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Science:! 

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23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  USSO 

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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHIVI/ICIVIH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


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The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  nay  alter  any  of 'the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checlced  below. 


D 


D 


D 
D 


n 


0 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I     I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommagte 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurte  et/ou  pelliculAe 


I     I   Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


I     I   Coloured  maps/ 


Cartes  gtographiques  en  couleur 


□   Coloured  inic  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  blacic)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

I     I   Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
ReliA  avec  d'autres  documents 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  <'!stortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  re  liure  serr^e  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intirieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajoutAes 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  Atait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  4tA  filmtes. 


L'institut  a  microfilmii  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  6t6  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mAthode  normaie  de  filmage 
sont  indiqute  ci-dessous. 


I     I   Coloured  pages/ 


D 


y/ 


n 

D 
D 


Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagtes 

Pages  restored  and/oi 

Pages  restaurtes  et/ou  peiiicui^es 

Pages  discoloured .  stained  or  foxe« 
Pages  dicoiortes,  tachettes  ou  piqutes 


I — I    Pages  damaged/ 

I — I    Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 

r~^   Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 


T 

P 
o 
fl 


0 
b 
tl 

si 
o 

fl 

si 
o 


Pages  detached/ 
Pages  d6tachtes 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  print  varies/ 
QualitA  InAgale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  material  suppMmentcire 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Mition  disponible 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  At*  fiimies  A  nouveau  de  fapon  h 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


T 
si 

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di 

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ri 
ri 

IT 


Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  supplAmentaires: 


Irregular  pimination.   [i]  -  [xvil  -[15]  •  430, 433  -  487  p. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  de  rMuction  indiqu*  ci-dessous. 

10X  14X  18X  22X 


26X 


30X 


y 

12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


Thtt  copy  film«d  h«r«  has  b««n  r«produc«d  thanks 
to  tha  ganarosity  of: 


L'oxamplaira  film*  f ut  raproduit  grica  A  la 
ginArosit#  da: 


Unhreraity  of  Alberta 
Edmonton 

Tha  imagas  appaaring  hara  ara  tha  hast  quality 
possibia  considaring  tha  condition  and  lagibility 
of  tha  original  copy  and  in  kaaping  with  tha 
filming  contract  spacificationa. 


University  of  Aliierta 
Edmonton 

Las  imagas  suivantas  ont  At*  raproduitas  avec  la 
plus  grand  soln.  compta  tanu  da  la  condition  at 
da  la  nattati  da  i'axamplaira  film*,  at  an 
conformity  avac  las  conditions  du  contrat  da 
filmaga. 


Original  copiaa  in  printad  papar  covars  ara  filmad 
baginning  with  tha  front  covar  and  anding  on 
tha  laat  paga  with  a  printad  or  illuatratad  impros- 
sion,  or  tha  iMck  covar  whan  appropriata.  All 
othar  original  copiaa  ara  filmad  baginning  on  tha 
first  paga  with  a  printad  or  illuatratad  impraa- 
sion.  and  anding  on  tha  last  paga  with  a  printad 
or  illuatratad  impraaaion. 


L  «  axamplairas  originaux  dont  la  couvartura  an 
papiar  ast  ImprimAa  sont  filmte  an  commandant 
par  la  pramiar  plat  at  9n  tarminant  soit  par  la 
d^rnikn  paga  qui  comporta  una  amprainta 
d'impraasion  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  la  sacond 
p^at,  salon  la  cas.  Tous  las  autras  axamplairas 
originaux  sont  filmAs  an  commandant  par  la 
pramlAra  paga  qui  comporta  una  amprainta 
d'impraasion  ou  d'illustration  at  an  tarminant  par 
la  darnidra  paga  qui  comporta  una  talla 
amprainta. 


Tha  laat  racordad  frama  on  aach  microflcha 
shall  contain  tha  symbol  ^^  (moaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  tha  symbol  ▼  (moaning  "END"), 
whichavar  appliaa. 

Maps,  plataa,  charta,  ate,  may  ba  filmad  at 
diffarant  raduction  ratios.  Thosa  too  larga  to  ba 
antiraly  includad  in  ona  axposura  ara  filmad 
baginning  in  tha  uppar  laft  hand  cornar,  laft  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  framas  aa 
raquirad.  Tha  following  diagrams  illustrata  tha 
mathod: 


Un  das  symbolaa  suivants  apparaltra  sur  la 
darniira  imaga  da  chaqua  microficha,  salon  la 
cas:  la  symbols  — »•  signifia  "A  SUIVRE",  la 
symbols  ▼  signifia  "FIN". 

Las  cartas,  planchas.  tablaaux.  ate,  pauvant  Atra 
filmte  A  das  taux  da  rMuction  diffirants. 
Lorsqua  la  documant  ast  trop  grand  pour  Atra 
raproduit  an  un  saul  clichift,  il  ast  film*  A  partir 
da  I'angla  supAriaur  gaucha,  da  gaucha  A  droita, 
at  da  haut  an  bas,  an  pranant  la  nombra 
d'imagas  nteassaira.  Las  diagrammas  suivants 
illustrant  la  mithoda. 


1  2  3 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

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Placer  ^;ININ(^  Hydraulic  System. 


IN  Richest  Alaska 

AND  THE 

Gold  Fields  of  the  Klondike 


How  they  were  found,  How  worked,  What  fortunes  have  been  made,  The  extent 

and  richness  of  the  Gold  Fields,  How  to  get  there, 

Outfit  required,  Climate, 

Together  with  a  History  of  this  Wonderful  Land 

From  its  discove  ry  to  the  present  day,  a  graphic  description  of  its  unh'mited 
mineral  re*  ources,  its  topography,  animal  and  vegetable  products, 
its  people,  government  and  institutions,  and  prac- 
tical information  for  gold  seekers. 


Prepared  under  the  special  supervision  of  A.  J.  Munson,  the  well-known  author, 

and  editor  of  "  Facts  and  Fiction,"  the  leading  Western 

monthly,  and  written  especially 

By  ERNEST  INGERSOLL.  ESQ. 

Author  of  "  Knocking  Round  thb  Rockibs,"  "  Ckbst  or  ths  Contimsnt,"  "  GuiDs 

Book  to  Wbstbrn  Canada/'  "  Thb  Icb  Qubbm,"  "  Thb  Silvbr  Cavbs,"  Etc., 

Etc.     Also  an  bxtensivb  travbler  throughout  all  that  North- 

WBSTBRM  RbGION  FOB  THB  UnITBD  StATBS  GboLOGICAL  SuRVBV 

AND  THB  Smithsonian  Institution,  and  who  has  sfbnt 
YBARS  in  Alaska  and  thb  Klohdikb  rbgions, 

And  Assisted  by  HENRY  W.  ELLIOTT,  Esq. 

Agbnt  or  thb  Unitbd  Statbs  Oovbrnmbnt  fob  Twblvb  Ybars  in  Alaska. 


profusely  illustrated 


THE  DOMINION  COMPANY,  PUBLISHER 

356  Dearborn  Street,  Chicago,  U.  S<  A. 


Copyright,  1897,  By  The  Dominion  Company. 


LIBRARY 
IHUVERSiTY  OF  ALBERTA 


INTRODUCnON. 


When  one  of  Baronov's  Slavonian  hunters  stood  before  him 
in  the  privacy  of  a  special  meeting  at  Sitka,  in  1^04,  and  took 
out  from  his  pocket  a  handful  of  golden  nuggets  and  scales,  say- 
ing as  he  did  so  that  he  knew  where  there  was  "plenty  more,"  the 
old  Russian  Governor  chilled  him  with  a  fierce  gesture  of  disgust, 
then  said  to  him:  "Ivan,  I  forbid  you  to  go  farther  m  this  under- 
taking; not  a  word  about  this,  or  we  are  all  undone;  let  the  Ameri- 
cans and  the  Englishmen  know  that  we  have  gold  in  these  moun- 
tains, then  we  are  ruined;  they  will  rush  in  on  us  by  thousands, 
and  crowd  us  to  the  wall — ^to  the  death." 

V 

Baronov  was  right  as  a  Russian  fur-trader;  he  knew  that 
word  of  Ivan's  discovery,  if  given  voice,  would  bring  that  scourge 
of  fur-bearing  districts,  the  miner,  into  the  very  depths  of  Rus- 
sian America  instantly,  and  so  he  suppressed  the  news;  he  and  his 
successor  also,  suppressed  it  well. 

But  the  successors  of  Baronov  were  not  his  equal  in  money- 
making  as  fur-traders  and  managers;  they  ran  into  debt,  and  these 
debts  of  the  Russian  American  Company  induced  the  Imperial 
Government  to  part  with  Alaska  to  the  United  States  of  America 
in  1867.  The  Russian  authorities  turned  Alaska  over  to  us  with 
a  good  word  for  its  furs  and  fisheries,  and  nothing  else. 


••• 

m 


^236170 


"^-^  iH..m^iii^si:i.a:: 


iv 


INTRODUCTION. 


Thousands  of  our  people  went  up  to  investigate  the  natural 
resources  of  Alaska  in  1867-70;  they  found  the  fisheries  and  the 
fur  seals  very  quickly,  but  they  were  disappointed  in  the  profitable 
search  then  for  precious  metals  and  coal;  the  timber  and  growing 
of  useful  crops  were  disappointments  too. 

Matters  quieted  down  to  a  common  understanding  that  there 
was  no  particular  mineral  wealth  in  Alaska  until  the  great  Tread- 
well  mine  was  opened  late  in  the  "seventies/'  and  the  mining 
camp  and  town  of  Juneau  became  firmly  established  early  in  the 
"eighties;"  since  then  the  opening  of  one  mining  camp  after 
another  has  steadily  progressed  until  to-day  hardy  men  are  busy 
digging  for  gold  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  Alaska. 

The  man  who  "prospects"  for  gold  in  Alaska  has  an  infinitely 
more  difficult  task  than  he  has  in  California  or  any  of  the  min- 
ing districts  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  States.  In  the  Alaskan  coun- 
try moss,  or  "sphagnum,"  and  lichens  rankly  grow  all  over  the 
earth  and  rocks  of  the  great  interior,  so  as  to  completely  conceal 
the  character  of  it,  while  the  strange,  luxuriant  growths  of  shrubs 
and  ferns,  grasses  and  vines  completely  cover,  up  to  the  mountain 
snows,  the  entire  surface  outcrop  of  rocks  and  soil  of  the  Alaskan 
coast  line  between  our  foot  of  the  "30-mile  strip"  at  Fort  Simpson, 
up  to  the  confines  of  Cook's  Inlet. 

Searching,  therefore,  for  indications  of  valuable  "mineral" 
in  Alaska  is  tedious,  and  success  is  purely  accidental — necessarily 
so,  for  every  foot  of  new  territory  must  be  uncovered  before  the 
least  indication  of  what  it  really  is  can  be  secured. 

No  ranches  or  farms  up  there  where  the  tired  and  hungry 
prospector  can  refit  with  food  at  any  season  of  the  year,  as  he  can 
in  the  States;  he  encounters  there  a  climate  that  chains  him  to 


INTRODUCTION. 


one  place,  wherever  he  may  be,  when  inland,  from  November  till 
the  next  June  following. 

But  man  possesses  an  elastic  physical  organization,  and  there 
is  nothing  in  the  country  of  Alaska,  or  in  its  weather,  that  will 
successfully  bar  him  out  from  thoroughly  developing  its  mineral 
wealth  wherever  it  is  found  within  the  broad  area  of  that  region. 
Life  in  its  borders,  and  especially  in  the  great  interior,  is  disagree- 
able when  contrasted  with  existence  on  the  gold  fields  of  Califor- 
nia; but  that  will  count  for  nothing  in  the  minds  of  men,  who, 
seeking  for  gold,  find  it  in  Alaska:  because,  rough  and  unpleasant 
as  country  and  climate  on  the  Yukon  and  its  tributaries  make  the 
life  of  a  miner,  yet  it  is  a  healthy  air  he  breathes,  and  he  is  not 
troubled  with  sickness  of  any  unusual  form.  Mosquitoes  in  the 
summer,  of  venomous  energy,  and  intense  dry  cold  of  the  winter 
within  the  Yukon  interior  do  not  destroy  him,  though  they  do 
annoy  and  retard  his  progress. 

Broadly  speaking,  yet  entirely  correct,  Alaska  possesses  three 
distinct  rones,  the  Sitkan  and  Cook's  Inlet  district,  the  Aleutian 
Island  and  Peninsular  district,  and  the  Great  Interior  or  Yukon 
region.  Gold  has  been  found  in  all  of  them,  but  chiefly  in  the 
first  and  last  named  districts;  it  is  the  climate  peculiar  to  these 
districts  that  separates  and  defines  them  sharply,  not  the  land  as 
viewed  with  regard  to  itself,  but  rather  the  lay  of  the  land  with  ref- 
erence to  the  ocean.  The  Sitkan  and  Aleutian  regions  get  the 
warmer  influence  of  ocean  currents  setting  north  in  the  g^eat 
Pacific,  so  as  to  greatly  modify  those  degrees  of  cold  in  winter 
and  heat  in  summer  that  prevail  in  the  Yukon  region.  But  this 
modification  in  climate  does  not  give  those  regions  any  agricul- 
tural or  pastoral  possibilities  even — ^not  an  acre  of  the  cereals  ever 


■*^:r... 


VI 


INTRODUCTION. 


if 


ripened  in  Alaska  or  ever  will,  as  climatic  conditions  pre- 
vail. 

So,  it  is  a  country  in  its  length  and  breadth  which  I  described 
in  detail,  twenty  years  ago,  using  the  following  summary: 

"In  view  of  the  foregoing  what  shall  we  say  of  the  resources 
of  Alaska  viewed  as  regards  its  agricultural  or  horticultural 
capabilities? 

"It  would  seem  undeniable  that  owing  to  the  unfavorable 
climatic  conditions  which  prevail  on  the  coast  and  interior,  the 
gloomy  fogs  and  dampness  of  the  former,  and  the  intense  pro- 
tracted severity  of  the  winters,  characteristic  of  the  latter,  unfit 
the  Territory  for  the  proper  support  of  any  considerable  civiliza- 
tion. '  . 

"Men  may,  and  undoubtedly  will,  soon  live  here  in  compara- 
tive comfort,  as  they  labor  in  mining  camps,  lumber  and  ship 
timber  mills  and  salmon  factories,  but  they  will  bring  with  them 
everything  they  want,  except  fish  and  game,  and  when  they  leave 
the  country  it  will  be  as  desolate  as  they  found  it. 

"Can  a  country  be  permanently  and  prosperously  settled  that 
will  not  in  its  whole  extent  allow  the  successful  growth  and  ripen- 
ing of  a  single  crop  of  corn,  wheat,  or  potatoes,  and  where  the 
most  needful  of  any  domestic  animals  cannot  be  kept  by  poor 
people? 

"We  may  with  pride  refer  to  the  rugged  work  of  settlement 
so  successfully  made  by  our  ancestors  in  New  England,  but  it  is 
idle  to  talk  of  the  subjugation  of  Alaska  as  a  task  simply  requiring 
a  similar  expedition  of  persistence,  energy,  and  ability.  In  Mass- 
achusetts our  forefathers  had  a  land  in  which  all  the  necessaries 
of  life,  and  many  of  the  luxuries,  could  be  produced  from  the  soil 


INTRODUCTION. 


vu 


with  certainty  from  year  to  year;  in  Alaska  their  lot  would  have 
been  quite  the  reverse,  and  they  could  have  maintained  themselves 
there  with  no  better  success  than  the  present  inhabitants.  Atten- 
tion should  be  directed  to  the  development  of  its  mineral  wealth, 
which  I  have  reason  to  think  will  yet  prove  to  be  considerablcj 
and  efforts  should  be  made  to  stimulate  and  protect  the  present 
available  industries  of  the  fur  trade,  the  canning  of  salmon,  etc."* 

Twenty  years  of  intelligent  and  active  investigation  by  thou- 
sands of  our  people  since  the  publication  of  this  analysis  has  con- 
firmed its  truth  beyond  cavil  or  doubt.  But  the  development 
of  Alaskan  mines  and  mining,  and  its  salmon  canneries,  has  prac- 
tically ruined  ihe  fur  trade — these  industries  cannot  thrive  side  by 
side. 

Alaskan  mining  for  the  precious  metals  is  in  its  infancy:  not 
one  thousandth  part  of  the  min'^ral-bearing  surface  rock  and  soil 
of  that  region  has  yet  been  examined;  that  work  is  slow  and 
tedious  in  so  rugged  a  country,  even  for  the  hardiest  and  best- 
conditioned  prospectors,  and  the  success  and  the  failure  of  these 
men  will  from  this  time  forward  be  constantly  in  our  sight. 

Henry  W.  Elliott. 


»  A  Report  on  the  Condition  of  Affairs  in  the  Territory  o/AUukat  hj  Hemy  W. 
Elliott,  Washington,  1875 ;  pi^es  18  and  I9. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 


THB  DISCOVERY  OF  THE   KLONDIKE   DIGGINGS. 

The  first  newt  from  the  Klondike — Excitement  in  San  Francisco  on  the  arriral 
of  the  '<  Excelsior" — The  glad  news  carried  around  the  world — «On  to 
the  Klondike!" — Scenes  along  cj  ivharves  of  Seattle — The  goldsn  treas- 
ures of  the  returned  Argonauts — Si  aie  of  the  first  citizens  of  Dawson 
City— The  women  of  Bonanza  an  1  El  Dorado  Creeks — Some  good  claims 
and  those  who  own  them—**  >  .7  dii i, '  and  where  it  is  to  be  found,  .   .   . 


PAGE 


15 


CH/P'iER   II. 

THE  YUKON  RIVER,   ITS   PLACER   FIELDS  AND  THEIR  DISCOVERY. 

Crater  Lake — The  Yukon,  Alaska's  gigantic  inland  highway — The  great  rivers 
of  the  world — River  craft — The  rival  trading  companies — Hudson  Bay 
officials  the  first  explorers — Gold  bars  on  the  Big  Salmon — The  first  big 
strikes— The  tented  banks  of  the  El  Dorado  and  Bonanza — McCormick 
the  original  Klondiker — A  buckskin  bag  and  its  story — The  arms  of  the 
Yukon— Thawing  and  freezing  at  the  diggings 30 

CHAPTER  III. 


ROUTES  TO  THE  ALASKAN  INTERIOR. 

Dyea  the  base  of  supply  for  overland  travel— The  Chilkoot  Pass  and  Lake 
Lindeman  trail— The  Stick  Indian  packers— Boat-building  on  the  lakes — 
Shooting  Miles  Cafton,  White  Horse  and  Five-Finger  or  Rink  Rapids— 
Sucking  supplies  by  the  way— The  White  and  Chilkat  Passes— Taku 
Iniet  and  Fort  Macpherson  routes — All  the  way  to  the  Klondike  by  water 
— Fkoposed  railway*  to  pierce  the  ^old  fields, 


44 


.^!¥m^m'^t 


CONTENTS. 


II 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  OUTFIT  OF   AN  ARGONAUT. 

PACK 

The  qualifications  of  a  successful  miner — One  temptation  of  the  gold-digger — 
Provisions  for  the  journey  to  Dawson  City — Camping  outfit  and  cooking 
utensils — ^Th  tool  chest  of  a  Lake  Lindeman  boat-builder — What  to  wear 
in  low  temperatures — Supplies  for  a  year's  stay — Turnips  by  the  pound — 
The  Dawson  City  storekeeper's  scale  of  prices — Reasons  for  lower  prices 
— ^The  custom  houses  at  Dyea  and  Lake  Bennett — ^A  few  pointers  for  pros- 
pectire Alaskans,    .  .  .' 79 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE  MINING  CAMPS   OF  THE   UPPER  YUKON  :    THEIR  LIFE  AND  LAWS. 

Phases  of  human  existence  in  the  ice-bound  towns — Circle  City  as  a  base  of 
supplies  and  the  metropolis  of  the  Yukon  country — Fort  Cudahy  and  the 
famous  Forty-Mile  Post — Dogs  by  the  hundred — Homes  without  the  Tani- 
ties  of  civilized  regions — Gambling  with  big  stakes — Liquor  traffic  and  its 
evils — The  boom  at  Dawson  City — Some  strange  things  about  the  mail 
service — A  small  fortune  spent  in  delivering  each  mail  bag — Bottles  of 
gold  the  legal  tender — ^The  Canadian  moimted  police 95 

CHAPTER  VI. 

PLACER   MINING. 

ilncient  and  modem  methods  as  applied  to  the  Klondike  fields — How  the 
riches  are  carried  from  mountain  to  gulch  and  plain — Pans,  rockers, 
'  sluice-boxes,  and  other  implements  of  the  miner's  craft — Watching  for  the 
yellow  metal  in  the  streams  of  muddy  water— The  wonders  of  hydraulic 
operations — ^Methods  in  vogue  on  the  frozen  gravels  of  Alaska — Opinions 
of  experts  on  the  present  and  future, 121 

CHAPTER  VII. 

ALASKAN   QUARTZ   MINES  AND   MINING. 

The  location  of  gold  deposits  on  the  coast  of  the  southeast — ^The  Great  Tread- 
well  Mine  on  Douglass  Island — The  largest  quartz  mill  in  the  world — 
Thousands  of  dollars  a  day  from  low-grade  ores — Other  mines  of  the  section 
— ^The  quartz  veins  of  the  Klonkike  country — Large  amounts  of  capital 
being  gathered  to  work  them — The  rich  promise  of  the  future — The  rules 
which  the  prospector  must  follow  in  his  search  for  hidden  treaanre— 
Methods  employed  in  working  the  golden  veins — Processes  of  the  rock- 
Iveaker,  stamp-mill,  and  concentrator, .......  ^  ^  «.  ^  ,  ....  ,    145 


CONTENTS. 


XI 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  MARKETING,   SMELTING,   ASSAYING,   AND   COINING   OF  GOLD. 

PAGB 
VHiat  the  miner  does  with  the  unrefined  product  of  hb  stamp-mill  and  concen- 
trator— Processes  which  the  yellow  metal  must  pass  through  before  the 
world  sees  it  as  coin — The  chlorination  and  cyanide  operations — Acid 
baths  to  separate  the  baser  metals  from  the  treasure — ^The  great  smelting 
furnaces  and  their  daily  flood  of,  riches— Among  the  ingots  of  pure  gold 
at  the  mint — The  assayer's  difficult  task — The  world's  output  of  gold  in 
four  hundred  years, 167 

CHAPTER    IX. 

MINING  LAWS  OF   THE   UNITED   STATES  AND  NORTHWEST  TERRITORIES. 

Early  laws  on  the  Yukon — Gold  and  silver  mines  the  property  of  kings — ^The 
establishment  of  a  gold  commissioner  at  Fort  Cudahy — ^The  newly  promul- 
gated Canadian  mining  regulations — Alternate  claims  reserved  for  the 
Crown — ^The  levying  of  royalties — Chartering  of  companies  in  the  North- 
west  Territories — Fees  for  incorporation— Application  of  the  United  States 
land  laws  to  A  laska — ^The  Mining  Acts  of  1866  and  1872 — The  miners' 
meetings — Size  and  location  of  claims — llie  camp  recorder  and  his  fees, 


191 


CHAPTER    X. 


THE    NATIVE    POPULATION. 

Dark-skinned  people  found  by  the  miner  in  the  frozen  North — Eskimo,  Atha- 
bascan, and  Thlinget — Uncertainty  about  the  origin  of  the  Innuits — The 
language  and  customs  of  a  curious  race — Strange  modes  of  life  near  the 
Arctic  Circle — The  mysteries  of  the  Totem  Pole — Dead  houses  of  the  Stick 
Indians — Miners  of  gold  who  knew  the  Klondike  field  long  before  the 
white  man  entered  the  land, aaj 

CHAPTER  XL 

RESOURCES    OF  ALASKA. 

President  Johnson's  <'  ice-box  " — Thirty-five  years  of  Alaskan  exports — Dense 
forests  of  spruce,  cedar,  and  pine — United  States  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture's Experimental  Station — Alaskan  flora — Cranberries  and  other  berries 
—Grain  and  grass  growing — Bituminous  coal — Marble — Big  game  of  the 
interior — Bears  the  one-time  terror  of  the  Klc  ^dike — Foxes  and  other  fur- 
coated  animals — ^Thedeer  and  their  threatened  extinction — Salmon  six  feet 
deep— The  cod  banks — Whaling,        ................   239 


^mmm^mtifimmmmimA'^..-. 


xu 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

CLIMATIC  CONDITIONS. 

The  wide  difference  between  the  climate  of  the  coast  and  the  interior What 

gold-seekers  will  find  in  the  way  of  weather— Mean  temperature  at  various 
points  compared — Influence  of  the  Pacific  currents— The  highest  and 
lowest  points  of  the  mercury— The  topography  of  the  country— Grandeur 
of  scenery  on  mountain  and  plain— Remarkable  tides  of  the  ocean,    .  .  . 

CHAPTER  XIII. 


PAGE 


268 


CIVILIZED    ALASKA. 

The  government,  trade,  and  cities  of  the  oldest  parts  of  the  Northern  Teiri- 
tory — Settlements  of  the  coast  and  how  they  are  supported — The  great 
salmon  canneries — The  strong  hand  of  Uncle  Sam— The  Greek  Church 
and  its  work  among  the  natives — The  capital  and  metropolis  of  the 
territory — What  the  intrepid  missionaries  have  done  for  Alaska, 283 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

NOTES   FROM  ALASKAN   HISTORY. 

Vitus  Bering,  an  emissarjf  of  Peter  the  Great — Discovery  of  Mount  St.  Eliafr— 
Fourteen  lost  sailors — Alexander  Baranof  and  the  inception  of  the  Russian 
American  Company — Spanish  attempts  to  possess  Alaska— Russian  oppres- 
sion and  cruelty — An  idyll  of  Baranof  Castle — Purchase  by  the  United 
States— A  blood-stained  flag — The  naming  of  the  territory — Military  occu- 
pation and  civil  government — Governors  past  and  present — Proposed 
Inflation, 503 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE    BOUNDARY   DISPUTE. 

Two  ends  of  the  international  dispute — Mt.  St  Elias  a  settled  point — ^The 
passage  of  141st  meridian  through  the  gold  fields — The  Olney-Paunce- 
fote  treaty — The  evidence  of  old  time  treaties — Behm  or  Portland 
canal  ? — Canadian  claims  to  territory  administerrd  by  the  United  States 
— Changes  in  Canadian  map — ^The  removal  of  the  Metlakatia  Indians 
from  Canadian  to  United  States  territory — ^The  possession  of  Juneau  and 
D7«*» ..,*».... 


320 


CONTENTS. 


XIU 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


THE  PRIBYLOVy    OR   FUR  SEAL  ISLANDS  OF  ALASKA. 


PACK 


Chase  of  the  sea  otter— Piribylov's  discovery — ^The  Seal  Island — Educating 
the  young — System  of  reproduction — Movements  of  seal  herds — Male 
seals  fighting — Killing  bachelor  seals — Shooting  and  spearing — Killing 
young  males  only — Blaine's  plan — Blunders — Vain  efforts  at  pension-^ 
The  boundary  question, 335 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

REINDEER   IN   ALASKA. 

Alaskan  dogs  must  go — Introduction  of  reindeer  by  Rev.  Dr.  Sheldon  Jack- 
son— Both  food  and  raiment — Purchasing  station  in  Siberia — Distribu- 
tion in  Alaska — Fleet  of  foot  and  easily  supported — Reindeer  train 
service  to  the  Klondike — Reindeer  milk  for  Yukon  babies — A  Siberian 
moneymaker — Reindeer  to  harness — Character  of  the  fur — Some  figures 
on  the  reindeer  industry  in  Finland, 353 

CHAPTER  XVIIX. 


THE   GOLD  FINDS    OF  HISTORY. 

Gold  in  the  days  of  Abraham — Solomon's  expeditions  to  Ophir — Edomites  as 
Argonauts — Cortez  in  Mexico  and  Pizarro  in  Peru — Early  attempts  by  the 
English  to  find  gold  in  America — North  Carolina  an  <*  El  Dorado  " — The 
Geoi^an  "  Intrusion  " — The  days  of  the  Forty-niners — John  Marshall  and 
his  end — Australian  and  Klondike  nuggets  compared — The  Frazer  River 
craze — ^The  "  Kaffer  circus  *' — South  African  mines  capitalized  at 
$1,500^00,000— Four  hundred  years  of  gold  digging — The  gold  kings  of 
the  world, 367 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

BONANZA   KINGS. 

Smne  of  the  favioos  princes  of  the  gold-mining  world — From  poverty  to 
sudden  riches — The  miners'  cabins  changed  for  great  palaces  and  lux- 
urious living — Great  fortunes  easily  acquired  and  rapidly  thrown  away — 
Nuggets  of  pure  gold  picked  up  by  chance — The  best-known  cases  of 
finding  lumps  of  the  pure  yellow  treasure, 405 


xiv 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XX. 
Alaska's  silent  aTV. 


PAOB 


Anronl  display  during  Augnit — Awe-inspiring  mirages—"  Dick  "  Willoughby's 
negatiTe — A  splendid  business  venture — Prince  Luigi's  Tision — ^Tbemost 
famous  mirage  anywhere  to  be  found — L.  B.  French's  story  of  the  Silent 
City — How  Willoughby  made  his  find — A  stone  pile  for  a  record  vault — 
President  Jordan  investigates — ^The  scientific  explanation  of  mirages — 
Wuen  and  where  they  occur, 450 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

t  THE  GLACIERS. 

Wonders  of  the  northern  territory — ^The  great  ice  fields — ^The  formation  and 
action  (^glaciers — What  is  known  of  the  remarkable  Malaspina  glacier — 
Some  freaks  of  nature  which  man  studies  with  intense  interest — Some 
mysteries  in  the  frozen  land  which  he  cannot  solve — ^The  Muir»  Guyot, 
Seward  and  other  glaciers, 459 

CHAPTER  XXn. 

HUNTING  AND  FISHING. 

Wild  country  for  the  huntsman — Bi^'  game  in  the  chasms  and  on  the  mountains 
— Opportunities  of  the  fishermen — Mallards  and  canvasback  duck — I^ce 
of  game  in  the  Sitka  market — Native  Alaskans  not  sportsmen — Mosquitoes 
and  the  Bnuans — Suicide  rather  than  die  by  the  attacks  of  insects — 
mcholai  Huley  the  hero  of  a  fine  bear  story — Native  huntsmen,   ....   479 


.;r'i  '».' 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGS 

Sitka,  Chief  City  of  ALikSKA, 17 

Steamer  « Queen"  and  Muir  GLAasR, 36 

Street  Scene  in  Dawson  City, 53 

Interior  of  Miner's  Cabin,  Dawson  City, 53 

Group  of  Indian  Women  and  Pappoose, 7a 

Miners  En  route  to  Klondike, 89 

Chilkoot-Mountain  Route  to  Mines, 108 

Mount  St.  Elias  and  Muir  Glacier, 108 

Old  Russian  Block  House, 125 

Hydraulic  Mining  in  Silver  Bow  Basin,  Near  Juneau,  .   .  144 

Group  of  Miners  and  Indians, 161 

Group  of  Klondike  Gold  Miners 161 

Miner's  House  and  Native's  Totem  Pole, 180 

Ten  Thousand  Seals, -  .   .   .  197 

Klondike  Indian  Curios, .  .   .  .  ai6 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGE 

Oldest  House  in  Juneau, 233 

Old  RussiA>r  Stockade  on  the  Yukon, 25a 

Ikdian  Burying  Ground, 269 

Chilkoot  Coat, 288 

Shooting  the  Rapids  En  route  to  Klondike, 305 

Entering  the  Rapids,  Overland  Route  to  the  Mines,  .  324 

Passing  the  Miners  Over  the  Chilkoot  Pass,   .....  341 

Climbing  the  Mountain  Over  Chilkoot  Pass, 360 

FoRTv-KiLE  Creek, 365 

Camping  Out  on  the  Chilkoot  Mountain, 376 

Bonanza  Creek  Valley, 381 

Unloading  Supplies  for  the  Miners  at  Dawson  City,     .  388 

Third  House  Built  in  Dawson  City, 397 

Steamer  "Portus  B.  Weare"  Ice  Bound  at  Circle  City,  404 

Miner's  Cabin  on  the  Klondike, 409 

Klondike  Gold  Mining,  Showing  Sluice, 420 

Saw  Mill  Owned  by  Jos.  Ladue, 425 

Juneau— -Nearest  City  to  Chilkoot  Pass,    .   .    .   .    ...  432 

Placer  Mining — Hydraulic  System, 441 

XODAKERS  on  THE  YuKON, *  .  .  .  448 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE   DISCOVERY  OF   THE    KLONDIKE   DIGGINGS. 

The  first  news  from  the  Klondike — Excitement  in  San  Francisco  on  the  arrival  of 
the  *'  Excelsior  " — ^The  glad  news  carried  around  the  world — "  On  to  the  Klon- 
dike !"— Scenes  along  the  wharves  of  Seattle — The  golden  treasures  of  the  re- 
turned Ai^onauts — Some  of  the  first  citizens  of  Dawson  City— The  women  of 
Bonanza  and  El  Dorado  Creeks — Some  good  claims  and  those  who  own  them 
— '*  Pay  dirt,"  and  where  it  is  to  be  found. 

THROUGH  the  Golden  Gate  and  into  the  beautiful 
waters  of  San  Francisco  Bay  steamed  the  modest 
little  craft  "Excelsior"  on  the  morning  of  July  14,  1897. 
No  salvos  of  artillery  marked  her  arrival,  not  a  whistle 
in  the  harbor  blew  a  "  Welcome  Home !"  no  dipping 
pennants  indicated  that  a  few  hours  later  her  name 
would  be  carried  around  the  world  and  be  on  the  lips  of 
millions  of  people.  As  had  happened  many  times  before, 
the  good  ship  made  slowly  to  her  wharf  and  ten  minutes 
after  she  had  made  her  hawsers  fast  the  glad  nev/s  of  the 
gold-finds  on  the  Yukon  and  the  Klondike  had  been 
spread  broadcast  over  the  land,  from  ocean  to  ocean, 
from  Texas  to  Maine,  and  before  long  had  crossed  the 
seas  to  other  lands. 

Such  was  the  arrival  in  San  Francisco  of  the  forty 
hardy  spirits  who  months,  and  some  even  years  before, 
had  gone  out  to  the  frozen  lands  of  Alaska  in  the  attempt 
to  wrest  fortune  from  the  hands  of  fate,  and  who  now  re- 
turned triumphar",  bearing  with  them  their  pots  of  pre- 
cious gold.     The  stories  they  told,  many  of  them  well 

15 


S:'^^mt 


l6 


THE  GOLD  CRAZE  OF  1897. 


authenticated,  of  fortunes  made  in  a  night,  of  nuggets  of 
pure  gold  worth  twenty  double  eagles,  of  single  "  pans  " 
worth  from  $500  to  $1000,  of  cities  but  a  few  months  old, 
of  rivers  and  lakes  unknown  to  geography,  of  hardships 
and  terrible  sufferings  and  of  the  princely  claims  on  the 
Bonanza  and  £1  Dorado — these  and  other  stories  like 
them  flew  over  the  land  like  fire  over  a  parched  prairie. 
The  gold  craze  of  the  year  of  our  Lord  1897  ^^^  begun  I 

HALF   A  MILLION   IN   GOLD. 

This  vanguard  of  fortune  finders  brought  with  them 
over  a  half  million  of  dollars  worth  of  gold.  Not  one  of 
them  carried  less  than  $5000  and  from  th**;  figure  the 
amounts  secured  ran  up  to  almost  $90,0  .  Some  of 
this  wealth  was  in  the  shape  of  nuggets  the  size  of  hazel 
nuts  and  from  this  went  down  through  various  sizes  to 
the  proverbial  dust.  It  was  carried  loose  in  pockets,  in 
tin  cans,  in  canvas  bags,  in  wooden  boxes  and  some  of 
it  wrapped  up  in  paper. 

Three  days  after  the  arrival  of  the  **  Excelsior,"  the 
country  was  again  stirred  up  by  the  announcement  diat 
the  "Portland,"  another  ship  engaged  in  the  Alaskan 
trade,  had  put  into  Seattle  fourteen  days  out  from  St. 
Michaels  with  another  band  of  successful  miners  from  the 
Klondike  country.  There  were  sixty  in  this  party  and 
they  carried  with  them  in  native  gold  about  $700,000. 
If  the  hamlets  and  cities  of  the  United  States  were  look- 
ing for  confirmation  of  the  stories  flashed  over  the  world 
earlier  in  the  week,  the  arrival  of  the  "  Portland  "  afforded 
it    Immediately  men,  and  some  few  women,  of  all  sorts 


>» 


tskan 
St. 
the 
and 
,000. 
look- 
rorld 
irded 
lorts 


> 

I 
n 

5 

M 

n 


o 


> 


\ 


RUSH  TO  THE  GOLD  FIELDS. 


X9 


and  conditions,  representing  every  trade  and  profession, 
from  every  State  in  the  Union,  those  who  had  thriving 
businesses  of  their  own  and  those  who  had  none,  high  and 
low,  rich  and  poor,  weak  and  strong,  venturesome  and 
timid,  those  who  had  seen  service  in  other  mining  coun- 
tries and  those  absolutely  without  experience,  began  the 
rush  toward  Alaska  and  the  rivers  of  promise.  The 
scenes  during  the  past  weeks  along  the  wharves  of 
Seattle,  San  Francisco  and  other  Pacific  ports  baffle  de- 
scription. So  great  at  times  has  been  the  struggle  for 
positions  on  boats  going  to  the  northern  ports,  that  the 
passengers  on  the  down  trip  have  left  the  boats  with 
difficulty  on  account  of  the  press  due  to  those  seeking  to 
take  their  places.  The  rush  shows  no  sign  of  abatement 
and  is  likely  to  assume  even  greater  proportions  along 
toward  the  end  of  the  next  spring,  when  the  passage 
to  the  gold  fields  by  way  of  the  Yukon  River  opens  up. 

FIRST  WHITE   WOMAN   THERE. 

Among  the  most  fortunate  of  them  who  have  thus  far 
returned  to  this  country  bearing  gold  with  them  is  Prof. 
J.  S.  Lippey,  who  was  formerly  connected  with  the  Y.  M. 
C.  A.  of  Seattle,  as  its  secretary.  He  brought  down 
with  him  about  $85,000  in  bullion.  ,  His  wife  accom- 
panied him  all  the  while  he  was  in  Alaska,  having  been  the 
first  white  woman  to  cross  the  great  divide,  and  at  the 
time  she  left  she  had  the  further  distinction  of  being  the 
only  woman  in  camp.  The  Lippeys  went  to  the  Klon- 
dike from  Forty  Mile  Creek,  where  there  were  quite  a 
number  of  women.     Mrs.  Lippey  is  a  smdl,  brown. 


20 


LIFE  IN  THE  KLONDIKE. 


haired,  brown-eyed  woman,  tanned  unul  her  face  is  as 
brown  as  her  hair  and  her  eyes.  She  has  this  to  say 
about  her  experiences  in  Alaska : 

"The  country  is  beautiful,  and  quite  warm  in  sum- 
mer. It  is  different,  you  know,  in  winter.  Still,  even 
in  the  coldest  weather,  I  went  out  every  day,  though  not 
very  far.  I  was  the  first  white  woman  to  reach  Klon- 
dike Creek,  and  was  the  only  one  in  our  camp.  Mrs. 
Berry  was  the  only  white  woman  I  had  to  speak  to 
while  I  was  there.  She  was  with  her  husband  in  the 
next  camp,  a  mile  away. 

*'  How  did  we  live  ?  "  repeated  Mrs.  Lippey,  in  answer 
to  a  question.  "Well,  at  first  we  lived  in  a  tent.  It  was 
twelve  feet  by  eighteen,  eight  logs  high,  with  mud  and 
moss  roof,  and  moss  between  the  chinks,  and  had  a  door 
and  window.  Mr.  Lippey  made  the  furniture — a  rough 
bed,  table,  and  some  stools.  We  had  a  stove — there 
are  plenty  of  stoves  in  that  country — and  that  was  all 
we  needed.  The  cabin  was  cosy  and  warm.  I  looked 
after  the  housekeeping  and  Mr.  Lippey  after  the  mining." 

"As  to  eating,"  continued  Mrs.  Lippey,  "well,  we  had 
no  fresh  meat,  no  fresh  milk,  no  fresh  fruit,  no  eggs ;  it 
was  all  canned  food,  but  still  we  kept  in  good  health." 

RETURN   OF  THE   FORTUNATE. 

William  Stanley,  formerly  a  blacksmith  in  Seattle, 
went  to  Alaska  two  years  ago,  and  was  among  those 
who  returned  on  the  "  Portland."  He  had  with  him  jjii  5,- 
000  worth  of  gold,  found  on  Bonanza  Creek,  about  five 
miles  above  Dawson  City. 


SOME  OF  THE  LUCKY  ONES. 


21 


Henry  Anderson,  a  Swede,  who  is  well  known  in 
Seatde,  came  back  with  a  good  supply  of  gold  dust  and 
^45,000  he  had  received  for  half  his  claim  on  the  Klon- 
dike. 

Frank  Keller,  of  Los  Angeles,  Cal.,  went  to  Alaska 
last  year,  and  returned  with  $35,000  received  for  his 
claim. 

William  Sloat,  a  former  dry  goods  merchant  of  Naina- 
mo,  B.  C,  has  $52,000  received  for  his  claim. 

A  fellow  resident  of  Nainamo,  named  Wilkinson,  sold 
his  claim  for  ^^40,000. 

Jack  Home,  a  professional  pugilist  of  Tacoma,  was 
among  the  few  who  might  be  called  unlucky.  He  brought 
back  only  $6000  worth  of  dust. 

Frank  Phiscator,  of  Baroua,  Mich.,  has  $96,000  worth 
of  dust  and  nuggets,  He  was  one  of  the  first  to  go  to 
the  Klondike. 

MILLIONS  IN   NUGGETS. 

Joseph  Ladue,  who  originally  came  from  the  rural  dis- 
tricts in  the  vicinity  of  Binghamton,  N.  Y.,  and  spent 
most  of  his  life  working  about  the  farms  of  the  neighbor- 
hood, was  fortunate  enough  to  have  staked  off  the  claim 
upon  which  most  of  the  present  city  of  Dawson  is  located. 
He  had  been  in  Alaska  for  five  years,  having  spent  most 
of  his  time,  until  the  gold  fever  struck  him,  running  a  saw- 
mill, cut  of  which  he  claims  to  have  made  money,  notwith- 
standing that  labor  was  scarce  at  $15. 

The  luck  of  Clarence  J.  Berry,  formerly  a  fruit  raiser 
in  Southern  California,  is  the  greatest  thus  far  on  record. 
He  made  a  trip  to  the  country  around  Forty  Mile  Creek 


22 


A  THOUSAND  OUNCES  OF  DUST. 


a  couple  of  years  ago,  but  through  lack  of  funds  was  un- 
successful. He  returned  to  California  and  after  marry- 
ing decided  to  return  to  the  gold  fields  with  his  newly- 
wedded  wife,  and  it  was  a  fortunate  move  for  him.  In 
five  months  he  succeeded  in  removing  J^  130,000  from  one 
of  his  claims,  of  which  sum  he  paid  out  about  j^20,ooo  in 
wages  to  his  men.  In  the  meantime,  his  wife  worked  a 
little  claim  of  her  own  at  odd  moments  and  made  about 
$10,000  out  of  it.  The  couple  have  returned  to  San 
Francisco,  where  Berry  has  received  an  offer  of  $2,000,- 
000  for  his  Alaskan  holding. 

Robert  Kooks  brought  back  $14,000  in  gold  dust  and 
$12,000  he  received  for  his  half  interest  in  a  claim.  He 
has  an  interest  in  another  claim,  and  intends  to  return 
after  he  has  had  rest  and  enjoyment. 

J.  B.  Hollingshed,  after  two  years  spent  in  the  diggings, 
can  show  $25,000  worth  of  dust,  and  still  possesses  a 
claim,  to  which  he  intends  to  return. 

M.  S.  Norcross  was  one  of  those  who  were  looked 
upon  as  unfortunate.  He  selected  a  claim  but  became 
ill  and  could  not  work  it,  so  he  was  compelled  to  sell  out 
for  $10,000. 

Thomas  Flack  has  only  $6000  worth  of  dust,  but  he 
has  a  claim  at  Klondike  for  which  he  has  been  offered 
$50,000.     He  intends  to  return  to  work  it  himself 

Con  Stamatin  returned  with  a  third  share  of  $33,000 
worth  of  dust  taken  out  in  forty-five  days*  work. 

PLENTY  OF   GOLD   IN  ALASKA. 

"I  brought  down  just  1000  ounces  of  dust  and  sold  it 
to  the  smelting  works/'  said  William  Kulju.     "  I  sold  my 


PROSPECTING  ON  THE  KLONDIKE. 


23 


claim  for  $25,000.  When  I  went  to  Klondike  last  sum- 
mer I  had  only  a  few  dollars  and  a  pack.  Now  I  am 
going  home  to  Finland,  but  I  am  coming  back  next  year." 

John  Marks,  another  of  those  who  came  down  on  the 
"  Pofidand,"  had  with  him  $1 1,500  in  dust.  In  a  conversa- 
tion recently,  he  said: — "There  is  plenty  of  gold  in 
Alaska,  more,  I  believe,  than  the  most  sanguine  imagine, 
but  it  cannot  be  obtained  without  great  effort  and  endur- 
ance. The  first  thing  for  a  poor  man  to  do  when  he 
reaches  the  country  is  to  begin  prospecting.  As  snow  is 
from  two  to  five  feet  deep,  jprospecting  is  not  easy.  Snow 
must  first  be  shoveled  away,  and  then  a  fire  built  on  the 
ground  to  melt  the  ice.  As  the  ground  thaws  the  shaft 
must  be  sunk  until  bed  rock  is  reached.  The  average 
prospector  has  to  sink  a  great  many  shafts  before  he 
reaches  anything  worth  his  while.  If  gold  is  found  in 
sufficient  quantities  to  pay  for  working,  he  may  begin 
drifting  from  the  shaft,  and  continue  to  do  so  as  long  as 
he  finds  enough  gold  to  pay." 

Frederick  Lendsseen  returned  with  $13,000  worth  of 
gold  after  two  years  spent  in  Alaska.  He  sums  up  his 
opiiiion  as  follows : — "I  have  had  considerable  exper- 
ience in  mining,  and  say,  without  hesitation,  that  Alaska 
is  the  richest  country  I  have  ever  seen.  I  have  an  in- 
terest in  a  claim  near  Dawson  and  am  going  back  in  the 
spring." 

Greg  Stewart  brought  back  $45,000  received  from  his 
claim  and  a  good  quantity  of  dust  he  had  taken  out 
before  selling. 

Hollingshed  and  Stewart  who  worked  as  partners  had 
$25,000  worth  of  dust. 


24 


REPORTS  NOT  EXAGGERATED. 


M 
il 


it  i 


il: 


H- 


Mrs.  Eli  Gage,  daughter-in-law  of  Secretary  Lyman 
J.  Gage,  and  daughter  of  Portus  B.  Weare,  Manager  of 
the  North  American  Trading  and  Transportation  Com- 
pany, returned  to  Chicago  on  July  27th  from  a  trip  to 
the  Yukon  country.  Her  husband  represents  the  com- 
pany at  Dawson,  and  she  has  been  with  him  three 
months.  She  has  returned  to  Dawson  to  spend  the 
winter,  sailing  in  August  for  the  iar  northland,  where 
wealth  is  now  to  be  obtained  with  such  comparative  ease. 
Mrs.  Gage  is  enthusiastic  about  the  country  she  has 
visited.  She  investigated  its  resources,  had  every  op- 
portunity to  see  aright  what  the  real  situation  there  is, 
and  declares  that  none  of  the  reports  regarding  the  rich- 
ness of  the  Alaskan  land  for  the  gold-seekers  has  been 
exaggerated,  though  about  other  matters  in  the  Klon- 
dike region  many  false  reports  have  reached  the  United 
States. 

Mrs.  Gage  says  there  is  an  immense  amount  of  gold 
ir  the  Yukon  district.  Any  man  who  hr^s  pocket  money 
and  about  $500  for  "grub-staking"  a  claim  can  safely 
go  to  the  Klondike  region  and  expect  to  reap  a  liberal 
reward  for  his  efforts.  If  he  goes  poo  "ly  equipped  and 
supplied,  he  may  be  compelled  to  suffer  for  his  lack  of 
wisdom,  but  he  will  not  find  himself  among  hard-hearted 
people.     He  will  be  helped  if  he  deserves  assistance. 

On  her  way  home,  Mrs.  Gage  was  compelled  to  hide 
in  a  drawing-room  on  the  cars  when  it  became  known 
that  she  had  just  come  from  the  Klondike  country. 
Everybody  was  anxious  to  learn  about  the  gold  discov- 


h  ! 


ARRIVAL  OF  THE  GOLD-HUNTERS. 


25 


eries,  Mrs.  Gage  says  the  stories  of  probable  starvation 
have  little  foundation,  the  supplies  taken  from  Seattle 
and  San  Francisco  by  the  two  trading  companies  being 
sufficient  to  prevent  suffering  during  the  coming  winter. 

Here  are  some  of  the  interesting  things  this  wide- 
awake American  woman  finds  to  say  about  her  future 
home  and  her  experiences  there : 

"  We  waited  several  days  at  St.  Michael's  for  the  river 
steamer  for  Dawson  City.  When  the  boat  arrived  it 
was  loaded  with  the  gold-hunters  and  their  spoils.  The 
gold  was  carried  in  bags,  bottles,  and  sacks,  and  one  man 
had  his  fortune  in  an  old  boot.  They  came  tumbling  on 
the  deck  of  the  'Portland'  in  all  sorts  of  outlandish 
costumes. 

"  No  one  would  say  how  much  he  had  himself,  but  he 
very  willingly  made  a  guess  at  what  his  neighbor  had. 
Their  talk  would  excite  the  coolest  head.  There  was 
nothing  but  gold  in  the  Klondike.  I  absorbed  the  pre- 
vailing excitement  and  listened  to  the  wonderful  stories 
with  a  thrilling  pulse. 

"  We  sailed  from  St.  Michael's  July  3d.  It  is  wonder- 
ful how  fascinating  the  life  on  the  frontier  becomes.  The 
man  or  woman  who  gets  a  taste  of  it  and  succeeds  and 
thrives  by  it  rarely  gets  to  like  anything  else. 

"  It  was  most  interesting  to  study  the  men  and  women 
who  had  taken  the  desperate  chance  and  had  won.  Some 
of  them  had  gone  into  the  region  with  barely  enough  to 
keep  body  and  soul  together.  They  had  only  made  the 
attempt  as  a  last  resort.    Having  failed  to  make  a  sue- 


26 


ABANDONED  CLAIMS. 


cess  at  home,  they  had  resolved  to  make  one  plunge  and 
die  or  come  out  rich. 

"  The  most  pathetic  story  of  this  kind  was  that  of  Mr, 
and  Mrs.  Berry.  They  went  into  the  Klondike  without 
even  a  grub  stake.  They  were  on  their  wedding  tour, 
and  when  they  left  they  told  their  friends  they  might 
never  get  back  to  Fresno  alive. 

"  This  pair  sat  on  the  deck  of  the  *  Pordand '  fifteen 
months  after  their  departure,  and  their  plans  embraced 
bigger  things  than  scheming  to  find  a  man  who  would 
loan  them  $60  while  they  risked  their  lives  trying  to  get 
over  the  mountains  and  into  the  placer  district.  They 
were  like  two  children — Mr.  Berry  planning  to  buy  the 
farm  i:pon  which  he  has  been  unable  to  make  living 
wages,  and  Mrs.  Berry  getting  ideas  on  the  newest 
things  in  diamond  rings.  She  had  been  forced  to  omit 
this  feature  of  the  ceremony  when  they  started  for 
Alaska,  but,  like  all  women,  she  was  pleased  that  the 
ring  could  now  be  bought. 

*'  The  abandoned  claims  will  make  many  a  man,  not 
yet  on  the  scene,  rich.  There  are  many  claims  along 
the  best  known  creeks  that  have  been  abandoned.  The 
prospectors  would  be  digging  on  them  contentedly  earn- 
ing big  money  every  day.  There  would  them  come  a 
report  from  some  neighboring  place  of  fabulously  rich 
finds,  and  there  would  follow  at  once  a  wild  rush.  In 
this  way  claims  that  had  paid  moderately  were  passed 
in  search  of  others  that  would  banish  poverty  in  a 
month." 


THREE  MONTHS'  WORK. 


2^ 


William  Stanley,  one  of  the  argonauts  who  returned 
on  the  "  Portland,"  was  formerly  a  resident  of  Seattle,  and 
lived  on  Taylor  Street,  four  blocks  below  Jackson.  His 
story  runs  as  follows : 

"  My  son  and  myself  and  two  partners,  whom  we 
picked  up  on  tne  way  to  Juneau,  had  been  wandering 
through  the  Yukon  districts  for  several  months  with 
little  or  no  success,  when,  in  the  latter  part  of  last  Sep- 
tember, we  heard  of  the  Klondike  discoveries.  At  this 
time  we  were  en  route  along  the  Stewart  River,  being 
bound  for  Forty-Mile,  and  were  at  Sixty-Mile  when  the 
news  of  the  strike  first  reached  us.  We  hastened  to  the 
Klondike,  stopping  first  at  the  mouth  of  the  stream. 
The  day  following  our  arrival  the  little  steamer  *  Ellis,' 
with  1 50  wildly  excited  miners,  who  had  also  heard  of  the 
news,  arrivM.  There  was  a  rush  and  a  mad  run  for  the 
new  disco  /eries  along  Bonanza  and  EI  Dorado  Creeks. 
We  brought  up  first  on  El  Dorado  Creek,  locating  claims 
Nos.  25,  26,  53,  and  54.  That  was  about  the  first  of 
October.  We  prospected  25  and  26  until  we  satisfied 
ourselves  that  we  had  good  pay  dirt  in  each.  Then  we  set 
about  making  permanent  improvements  for  the  winter, 
such  as  building  cabins.  This  done,  we  set  to  work 
sinking  prospect  holes  in  different  parts  of  the  gulch. 
We  had  no  blankets.  Good  pay  dirt  was  taken  from 
every  hole,  and  at  the  end  of  three  months'  work  we 
cleaned  up  $1 12,000.  In  getting  this  much  gold  we  did 
not  drift  over  200  feet  altogether  up  and  down  the 
stream.    Nor  did  we  cross-cut  the  pay  streak.    We 


28 


AVERAGE  OF  PANS. 


I  ! 


calculate  that  these  two,  and  also  53  and  54,  will  run  up- 
wards of  $1,000  to  the  lineal  foot,  and  I  figure  that  we 
have  fully  $2,000,000  in  sight  in  the  four  claims.  There 
is  little  or  no  difference  in  the  55  and  56  claims  on  El  Do- 
rado. In  fact,  there  are  no  spotted  claims  on  the  creek. 
It  is  a  case  of  all  gold  and  yards  wide  and  yards 
deep.  Anywhere  you  run  a  hole  down  you  find  the 
pay  streak. 

"Our  pans  will  average  $3  throughout  all  of  the 
£1  Dorado  claims.  Many  go  as  high  as  $150,  and  some 
still  better.  I  took  out  $750  in  five  pans,  and  did  not 
pick  the  pans,  either.  I  took  the  pan  against  my  breast 
and  simply  scooped  it  in  off  the  bedrock. 

"  To  make  a  long  story  short,  I  think  El  Dorado  Creek 
is  the  greatest  placer  proposition  in  the  world.  There 
has  never  been  anything  discovered  on  the  face  of  the 
globe  like  it. 

"  In  my  opinion,  there  will  be  a  number  of  them,  too. 
Bear  Gulch  is  almost  another  El  Dorado.  There  is  a 
double  bedrock  in  Bear  Gulch,  though  but  very  few 
know  it.  The  bedrocks  are  three  feet  apart.  The  gold 
in  the  lower  bedrock  is  as  black  as  your  shoe,  and  in 
the  top  bedrock  it  is  as  bright  as  that  found  in  the 
El  Dorado. 

*'We  own  No.  10  claim  below  discovery  on  Bear 
Gulch,  and  also  20  and  2 1  on  Last  Chance  Gulch  above 
discovery.  We  prospected  for  three  miles  on  Last 
Chance,  and  could  not  tell  the  best  place  to  locate  dis- 
covery claim.    The  man  making  discovery  of  a  creek  is 


TROUBLE  SECURING  LABOR. 


29 


entitled  by  law  to  stake  a  claim  and  take  also  an  adjoin- 
ing one,  or,  in  other  words,  two  claims,  so  you  see  he 
wants  to  get  in  a  good  locality  on  the  creek  or  gulch. 

"  Hunker  Gulch  is  highly  looked  to.  I  think  it  will 
prove  another  great  district,  and  some  good  strikes 
have  also  been  made  on  Dominion  Creek.  Indian 
Creek  is  also  becoming  famous. 

"  What  are  we  doing  with  all  the  money  we  take  out  ? 
Well,  we  paid  $45,000  spot  cash  for  a  half-interest  in 
claim  No.  32  El  Dorado.  We  have  also  loaned  $5,000 
each  to  four  parties  on  El  Dorado  Creek,  taking  mort- 
gages on  their  claims,  so  you  see  we  are  well  secured. 
No ;  I  don't  want  any  better  security  for  my  money 
than  El  Dorado  claims,  thank  you.  I  only  wish  I  had  a 
mortgage  on  the  whole  creek. 

"  We  had  a  great  deal  of  trouble  securing  labor  in  the 
prospecting  of  our  properties.  Old  miners  would  not 
work  at  any  price.  We  could  occasionally  rope  in  a 
greenhorn  and  get  him  to  work  for  a  few  days  at  $15  a 
day.  Six  or  eight  miners  worked  on  shares  for  us  for 
about  six  weeks,  and  when  we  settled  it  developed  that 
they  had  earned  in  that  length  of  time  $5,300  each. 
That  was  pretty  good  pay,  wasn't  it  ?  We  paid  one  old 
.miner  $12  for  three  hours'  work,  and  offered  to  continue 
him  at  that  rate,  but  he  would  not  have  it,  and  went  out  to 
[hunt  a  claim  of  his  own.    I  am  g  .Ing  back  to  the  Yukon 

the  spring,  but  not  to  work.  When  I  threw  down 
ly  shovel  and  pick  it  was  for  the  last  time," 


m 


^mtma 


wm 


CHAPTER  11. 

THB   YUKON    RIVER,    ITS    PLACER    FIELDS    AND    THEIR 

DISCOVERY, 

Gnter  Lake— The  Vukon»  Alaska's  ^gantic  inland  highwaj—The  great  rivers  of 
the  world — River  craft — The  rival  trading  companies — Hudson  Bay  officials 
the  first  explorers-— Gold  bars  on  the  Big  Salmon — ^The  first  big  strikes — ^The 
tented  banks  of  the  El  Dorado  and  Bonanza — McCormick  the  original  Klon- 
diker — ^A  buckskin  bag  and  its  story — The  arms  of  the  Yukon — Thawing  and 
freezing  at  the  diggings. 

ALMOST  at  the  loot  of  Chilkoot  Pass  in  the  Kotusk 
Mountains  there  lies  a  little  body  of  water  known 
as  Crater  Lake.  From  this  diminutive  inland  sea^there 
stretches  away  a  continuous  water-course  to  Bering  Sea, 
a  distance  of  almost  2,000  miles.  Such  is  the  extent  of 
the  mighty  Yukon  and  its  headwaters.  What  the  Ama- 
zon and  La  Plata  are  to  South  America,  what  the  Missis- 
sippi is  to  the  central  portion  of  the  United  States,  and 
what  the  Kongo  and  Niger  are  to  Central  Africa,  this 
and  more  is  the  Yukon  to  Alaska.  It  is  the  great  natu- 
ral inland  highway  without  which  the  opening  up  of  the 
vast  interior  to  civilization  and  trade  would  have  been 
arduous  and  to  a  great  extent  impossible.  The  Yukon 
River  proper  extends  from  Fort  Selkirk,  at  the  conflu- 
ence of  the  Lewes  and  Pelly  Rivers,  in  the  Northwest 
Territory,  in  a  northwesterly  direction  400  miles  to  the 
Arctic  Circle,  and  then  to  the  southward  1,350  miles  to 
the  sea,  its  total  length  to  Fort  Selkirk  being  1,750.  Of 
this  distance  1,500  miles  lies  in  United  States  territory. 
The  360  miles  of  waterway  from  Crater  Lake  to  Fort 
Selkirk  are  made  up  of  a  succession  of  lakes  con- 

30 


i 

TERRITORY  DRAINED  BY  THE  YUKON.  ^I 

nected  by  streams  of  varying  length,  passing  finally  into 
the  Lewes  River.  Pelly  River,  which  unites  with  the 
Lewes  to  form  the  Yukon,  lies  to  the  northward  of  the 
latter,  and  is  about  275  miles  in  length. 

The  firitt  accurate  description  of  the  Yukon  River  was 
furnished  by  Dr.  W.  H.  Dall,  of  the  Smithsonian  Institu- 
tion. He  was  a  member  of  the  expedition  sent  out  in 
1865  by  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  to 
make  the  preliminary  surveys  for  a  telegraph  line  to  join 
the  old  world  with  the  new,  the  same  to  be  carried  over 
Bering  Strait  into  Siberian  Russia.  While  the  party  was 
at  work  in  Alaska  the  Atlantic  Cable  was  put  into  suc- 
cessful operation  and  the  expedition  was  recalled. 

The  territory  drained  by  the  Yukon  and  its  tributaries 
has  been  approximately  estimated  at  33i,c)cx>  square 
miles.  Its  size  may  be  judged  better  by  comparison 
with  the  other  great  rivers  of  the  world  which  are  esti- 
mated as  follows : 

Names.  Length  in  miles.  Area  drained  in  sq.  miles. 

Mackenzie, 2,400 440,000 

Missonri-Mississippi, 4,200 1,250,000 

Amazon 4»ooo  .........  2,506,000 

La  Plata, 2,300 1,250,000 

Hoang-Ho, 2,700 540,000 

Lena, 2,550 600,000 

Yang-tsi, 3,300 .........     500,000 

Kongo, 3,300 1,500,000 

Niger, 4,000 1,400,000 

The  Yukon  varies  in  width  during  the  lower  part  of 
its  course  from  one  to  ten  miles,  and  its  delta  spreads 
out  to  a  width  of  sixty  miles.    As  it  falls  away  to  the 


32 


TRAFFIC  ON  THE  YUKON. 


sea  from  the  Arctic  Circle  its  channel  is  cut  up  by  thou- 
sands of  islands.  The  current  in  places  is  strong  and 
it  is  reported  that  at  certain  seasons  the  waters  of  Ber- 
ing Sea  are  fresh  fully  fifteen  miles  from  the  mouth  of 
the  Yukon.  For  the  better  part  of  its  distance  the  river 
is  shallow,  and  only  navigable  to  light-draught  boats, 
under  four  or  five  hundred  tons  burden.  The  stern- 
wheel  type  is  the  only  craft  used  on  the  river,  and  even 
during  the  high-water  season  extreme  caution  has  to  be 
used  in  threading  the  channels.  It  is  believed  that  a 
powerful  light-draught  boat  of  not  more  than  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  tons  would  be  able  to  pass  Five-Finger 
Rapids  and  go  three  hundred  miles  further  through 
Hootalinqua  River  to  the  head  of  Teslin  Lake.  Among 
tributaries  of  the  Yukon  reported  navigable  for  light 
craft  are  the  Andreafski  for  50  miles,  the  Shagluk  for 
50  miles,  Innoko  for  50  miles,  Tanana  for  300  miles, 
Klanarchargut  for  25  miles,  Beaver  Creek  for  100  miles. 
Birch  Creek  for  150  miles,  Koyukuk  River  for  300  miles. 
Porcupine  for  100  miles,  Stewart  for  150  miles,  Pelly  for 
250  miles,  and  the  McMillan  for  200  miles;  but  these 
estimates  are  largely  guesswork. 

Traffic  on  the  Yukon  River  is  largely  controlled  by  the 
Alaska  Commercial  Company  and  the  North  American 
Transportation  &  Trading  Company,  both  companies 
having  stations  on  St.  Michael's  Island  and  at  various 
points  along  the  river.  The  former  company  has  two 
vessels,  one  of  two  hundred  tons  and  the  other  of  three 
hundred;  the  latter  has  a  fleet  of  six  boats,  the  "Weare," 


DISOOVERIES  MADE. 


33 


by  the 
erican 
panics 
Irarious 
as  two 
three 


the  "Cudahy,"  the  "Hamilton,"  the  "Healy,"  the 
"  Power,"  and  the  "  Klondike."  All  these  steamers 
carry  both  freight  and  passengers. 

Except  during  ten,  or,  at  the  most,  twelve,  weeks  dur- 
ing the  summer  the  Yukon  is  ice-bound  from  its  mouth 
to  the  headwaters.  Some  years  it  opens  up  about  June 
I  St,  but  usually  it  is  nearer  the  middle  of  the  month  before 
the  boats  begin  their  trips.  About  September  ist  trafific 
ceases,  and  severe  weather  is  experienced. 

The  history  of  the  development  of  the  Yukon  gold 
mines  extends  back  a  great  many  years;  in  fact, 
long  before  the  northwestern  territory  came  into  the 
possession  of  the  United  States.  As  has  been  the  case 
in  other  fields,  the  earliest  discoverers  of  the  yellow 
metal  in  the  country  deserve  little  credit,  inasmuch  as 
they  failed  to  follow  up  their  findings,  and  hence  the  dis- 
coveries have  had  little  or  no  influence  on  the  progress 
of  the  country  and  absolutely  none  on  the  more  recent 
developments  around  the  head-waters  and  along  the 
valley  of  the  gigantic  Yukon. 

This  country  was  originally  explored  by  the  agents  of  the 
Hudson  Bay  Company,  in  1 840,  and  as  early  as  1 860  it  was 
reported  that  gold  in  small  quantities  had  been  unearthed 
by  these  officials,  but  little  was  heard  of  it.  George 
Holt,  who,  in  1878,  made  the  trip  from  Lake  Lindeman  to 
the  Hootalinqua  River,  which  runs  into  Lewes  River,  prob- 
ably deserves  the  credit  for  opening  up  the  Yukon  gold 
fields.     Returning  by  the  same  route,  he  reported  having 


'"^m 


34 


MINERS  AND  PROSPECTORS. 


made  finds  along  the  Hootalinqua,  which  is  the  miners' 
name  (due  to  a  mistake)  of  the  Teslintoo  River,  which  flows 
down  from  Teslin  Lake,  on  the  British  Columbia  border. 
He  never  went  back  to  the  interior,  but  the  news  he  fur- 
nished of  the  country  caused  Edward  Bean  to  lead  a 
goodly  train  up  over  Chilkoot  Pass  and  down  the  chain  of 
lakes  which  lead  to  the  Yukon,  during  the  early  8o's. 
Bean  came  from  Sitka,  and  was  one  of  the  original  owners 
of  the  Treadwell  mine  property.  The  party  met  with  in- 
different success,  finding  the  coveted  treasure,  but  not  in 
sufficient  quantities  to  encourage  them  in  further  effort 
The  opening  was  made,  however,  and  miners  and  prospec- 
tors began  going  over  the  Chilkoot  Pass  in  large  numbers. 
These  parties  did  their  work  for  the  most  part  on  Cana- 
dian soil  and  principally  along  the  Lewes  River  and  its 
tributaries.  They  ascended  the  Big  Salmon  and  found 
the  precious  metal  on  all  its  bars.  The  finds  on  Cana- 
dian soil,  however,  until  quite  recently,  were  none  of 
them  suf!iciendy  alluring  to  cause  a  stampede  towards 
them. 

FINDS  IN  THE  YUKON   DISTRICT. 

Up  to  1886,  the  finds  in  the  Yukon  district  were  con- 
fined almost  entirely  to  territory  traversed  by  its  head- 
waters, embracing  the  White,  Stewart,  Pelly,  Lewes  and 
Hootalinqua  Rivers.  In  that  year,  what  may  be  called 
the  middle  division  of  the  Yukon,  extending  from  Fort 
Selkirk  to  the  mouth  of  the  Tanana  River,  was  first 
opened  up  by  the  discovery,  on  Forty  Mile  Creek,  of 
gold  in  goodly  quantities.  This  caused  a  general  cessa- 
tion of  operations  along  the  nead-waters,  and  the  largely- 


liners' 
I  flows 
arder. 
le  fur- 
ead  a 
ainof 
8o's. 
vners 
thin- 
lotin 
effort 
spec- 
ibers. 
^ana- 
d  its 
ound 
^ana- 
le  of 
^ards 


con- 
Lead- 
and 
died 
Fort 
first 
k,  of 
issa- 
rely- 


..I!^l,<■•:       .,-..,,...■  .<-ijSte,,J»; 


%       ^ 


^Hb         ' 


THE  FIRST  GOOD  STRIKE. 


37 


increased  working  force  due  to  this  source  caused  claims 
on  Sixty  Mi^  ,  Miller,  Glacier,  Birch  and  Koyukuk 
Rivers  to  open  up  in  rapid  succession.  Forty  Mile  and 
Sixty  Mile  Creeks  rise  in  the  Ratzel  Mountains,  which 
divide  the  Tanana  from  the  Yukon  valley,  and  flow 
into  the  Yukon  from  the  west.  They  receive  their 
names  from  the  fact  that  they  were  considered  respec- 
tively forty  and  sixty  miles  from  the  trading-post,  Fort 
Reliance,  which,  up  to  1896,  was  the  commercial  centre  for 
thlo  section  of  the  Yukon  country.  The  real  distances 
are  somewhat  greater,  measured  as  are  all  these  dis- 
tances along  the  windings  of  the  river,  which  is  the  high- 
way of  travel. 

UPBUILDING   OF   CIRCLE   CITY. 

The  first  good  strike  on  Birch  Creek  was  made  in 
1893,  2ind  this  gave  rise  to  the  upbuilding  of  Circle  City. 
This  remained  the  most  important  mining  camp  in  this 
part  of  Alaska  until  December,  1 896,  when  it  was  almost 
wiped  off  the  map  by  the  exodus  to  the  Klondike,  where 
Dawson  City  speedily  arose  at  the  junction  of  the  Klondike 
and  Yukon  Rivers.  J.  O.  Hestwood,  of  Seattle,  who  has 
recently  returned  from  the  gold  fields,  has  told  how  gold 
was  first  found  on  the  Klondike. 

"The  discovery,"  he  said,  "was  made  by  an  old 
hunter  named  George  McCormick,  a  former  resident  of 
Illinois,  who  is  called  "Siwash  George,"  and  has  been 
I  on  the  Yukon  for  eight  years.  He  is  married  to  a  squaw 
and  has  several  half-breed  children.  McCormick  went 
up  in  the  spring  of  1896  to  the  mouth  of  the  Klondike 


I   '    ! 


I  I 


-g  NO  CLAIM-JUMPING  THERE. 

to  fish,  as  salmon  weighing  ninety  pounds  are  caught 
where  this  stream  meets  the  Ynkon.  The  salmon  didn't 
run  as  usual  and  McCormick,  hearing  from  the  Indians 
of  rich  places  nearby,  where  gold  could  be  washed  out 
in  a  frying  pan,  started  out  to  prospect. 

"Near  what  is  now  Dawson  City,  on  July  9th,  he 
struck  very  rich  pay  dirt  in  a  side  hill.  As  soon  as  news 
of  his  discovery  spread,  men  from  Circle  City  and  Forty- 
Mile  rushed  in.  The  richest  claims  are  in  Bonanza  Creek, 
which  empties  into  the  Klondike  from  the  south,  three  miles 
above  Dawson  City.  There  are  three  claims  in  that  dis- 
trict, each  500  feet  long,  exjtending  clear  across  the 
creek  on  which  it  is  located.  No  one  can  file  an  addi- 
tional claim  until  he  has  recorded  his  abandonnk  n-:  nf 
his  old  claim,  according  to  Canadian  law,  and  it  must  liOt 
be  forgotten  that  this  river  is  far  within  the  Canadian 
boundaries. 

"  In  the  adjoining  Hunker  district  there  are  200  claims. 
The  two  districts  have  been  well  prospected,  but  further 
up  the  Klondike  is  much  territory  which  has  never  been 
even  traveled  over. 

"  Old  miners  declared  that  the  north  side  of  the  Yukon 
was  worthless,  so  no  prospecting  was  ^one  until  McCor- 
mick started  in.  There  is  no  claim-jumping,  as  the 
Canadian  laws  are  rigid  and  well  enforced  by  the  presence 
of  the  Mounted  Police. 

THE   RUSH    FOR  KLONDIKE. 

"There  was  a  rush  for  Klondike  as  soon  as  the  dis- 
covery was  made  known  and  I  was  among  the  first  to 


PROSPECTING  IN  THESE  REGIONS. 


39 


get  there.  I  had  poor  luck  qt  first  and  after  a  few  days 
started  to  leave,  but  I  had  only  got  a  short  distance  down 
the  river  when  my  boat  got  stuck  in  the  ice  and  I  went 
back  to  Dawson  City.  I  bought  a  claim  and  it  proved 
one  of  the  richest  in  the  district. 

"  In  the  region  now  worked  there  are  a  score  of 
creeks,  each  rich  in  gold  deposits.  The  creeks  compris- 
ing the  bonanza  districts  are  Bonanza,  El  Dorado,  Vic- 
toria, Adams,  McCormick,  Reddy  Bullion,  Nugget  Gulch, 
Bear,  Baker  and  Chee-Chaw-Ka.  In  the  Hunker  district 
are  the  Main  Fork,  Hun>er  and  Gold  Bottom  Creeks. 

CREEKS    RICH    IN    GOLD   DEPOSITS. 

The  banks  of  these  streams  are  dotted  with  white  tents 
of  miners,  and  a  prettier  sight  it  would  be  hard  to  find. 
Over  on  Dominion  Creek  gold  has  been  found,  and  300 
miners  started  for  that  place  the  day  we  started  for  San 
Francisco.  The  surface  prospects  are  quite  as  favorable 
as  on  the  Bonanza." 

McCormick  was  not  allowed  to  be  the  sole  proprietor 
of  the  Klondike  for  a  very  long  period.  About  the  mid- 
dle of  August  his  supplies  ran  low  and  he  dispatched 
two  Indian  assistants  to  a  settlement  on  the  Yukon,  half 
way  between  Forty-Mile  and  Sixty-Mile  Creeks,  to  re- 
-'enish  ag  larder.  The  *'P.  B.  Weare,"  of  the  North 
American  Transportation  and  Trading  Company,  hap- 
pened to  be  stopping  at  the  settlement  at  the  time  the 
Indians  arrived  and  their  tales  of  the  rich  finds  en  the 
Klondike  caused  the  entire  crew  of  the  vessel  to  desert 
and  hasten  away  to  the  new  El  Dorado.     After  getting 


'  I 


I 


40 


THE  TRAGIC  TALE. 


a  native  crew  together,  the  "  Weare  "  pushed  on  down 
the  river  and  spread  broadcast  through  the  mining  camps 
the  news  which  since  has  electrified  the  world. 

Among  the  romances  which  will  be  forever  associated 
with  the  history  of  the  Yukon  none  savors  so  strongly 
of  the  rough  and  ready  country  through  which  it  wends 
its  way  than  does  the  story  of  the  founding  of  the  North 
American  Transportation  &  Trading  Company.  In 
the  winter  of  1892  Porteus  B.  Weare,  of  Chicago,  and 
Captain  John  J.  Healy  met  in  Chicago  after  a  separation 
of  years. 

They  had  c  companions  in  the  fur  trade  with  the 
Indians  at  old  1  ort  Benton,  on  the  Missouri  River,  in 
1865.  Mr.  Weare  had  returned  to  civilization  and 
taken  up  his  residence  in  Chicago,  but  Captain  Healy 
had  penetrated  to  the  head  of  Chilkoot  inlet,  established 
the  trading  post  at  Ty-a  (now  known  as  Dyea),  which 
bears  his  name,  and  continued  his  traffic  with  the  Indians 
until  he  became  known  as  "  Chief  of  the  Blackfeet." 

In  the  course  of  their  reminiscent  talk  Healy  drew 
from  his  pocket  a  buckskin  bag  and  displayed  to  his  old 
comrade  of  the  camp  and  trading  post  the  yellow  con- 
tents of  the  crude  purse.  Then  he  told  the  tragic  tale 
of  how  the  gold  had  come  into  his  possession.  The 
substance  of  his  narrative  was  this : 

One  fearfully  cold  day  in  the  latter  part  of  Decem- 
ber, 1 89 1,  two  or  three  Indians  entered  the  post  and 
offered  foi  barter  the  bag  containing  several  hundred 
dollars*  worth  of  dust.     Healy  eagerly  inquired  where 


ORGANIZATION  OF  A  COMPANY. 


41 


and  how  they  secured  the  gold.  Their  answer  was  that 
it  had  been  obtained  from  Tom  Williams,  a  trapper,  who 
had  made  the  long  pilgrimage  from  the  interior,  along 
the  Yukon,  but  had  died  before  reaching  the  post. 

The  Indians  were  able  to  give  the  trader  a  general 
description  of  the  locality  which  the  dying  trapper  had 
described  to  them  as  the  spot  where  he  discovered  what 
he  believed  would  prove  to  be  a  rich  gold  field. 

As  Mr.  Weare  knew  his  friend  to  be  a  practical 
miner,  his  faith  in  the  sagacity  and  the  judgment  of  the 
latter  was  strong.  The  story  also  awakened  in  him  the 
latent  longing  to  taste  once  more  the  pleasures  of 
frontier  adventure.  The  result  was  the  organization 
of  a  company  which  sent  steamers  to  the  headwaters  of 
the  Yukon  and  opened  up  the  country.  Captain  Healy 
has  been  in  Alaska  fifteen  years,  and  is  one  of  the  best 
known  men  in  the  countrv. 

The  territory  around  the  mouth  of  the  Yukon  is  very 
low.  In  fact,  the  reason  for  the  chief  trading  station  for 
this  section  of  Alaska  being  placed  on  an  island  sixty 
miles  above  the  usual  entrance  to  the  river  is  that  the 
delta  for  miles  around  is  entirely  covered  in  the  late 
spring  or  early  summer  by  freshets  due  to  the  ice  melting 
in  the  river.  Owing  to  the  way  in  which' the  Yukon  spreads 
out  as  it  passes  into  Bering  Sea  the  water  is  very  shallow 
and  eight  feet  is  about  the  maximum  depth  reached  in 
any  of  the  numerous  channels. 

The  two  most  interesting  arms  of  the  Yukon  are  the 
Lewes  and  Pelly  Rivers,  which  unite  to  form  it.     The 


42 


CHIEF  TRIBUTARY. 


former  is  all- important  on  account  of  the  part  it  plays  in 
the  overland  route  from  Juneau  to  the  gold  fields.  Its 
chief  tributary,  the  Hootalinqua,  is  the  stream  over  which 
the  Canadians  expect  to  see  carried  the  bulk  of  the  inland 
travel.  The  Pelly  River  rises  in  Pelly  Lakes,  near  the 
crest  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  which  there  form  the 
divide  between  the  basins  of  the  Yukon  and  MacKenzie 
Rivers.  These  lakes  are  precisely  where  the  129th 
meridian  crosses  the  626.  parallel  of  latitude;  and 
thence  the  river  flows  northwesterly  over  500  miles 
before  reaching  Fort  Selkirk.  The  country  through 
which  it  passes  is  mountainous  and  wild,  and  has  been 
explored  but  a  very  slight  extent.  The  Yukon,  after 
passing  Fort  Selkirk,  varies  from  one-half  to  three- 
quarters  of  a  mile  in  width.  On  the  northern  side 
it  is  bounded  by  an  almost  continuous  wall  of  rock 
of  volcanic  origin,  and  on  the  south  the  bank  is  low  and 
sandy.  After  passing  the  White  River  the  course  is 
almost  due  north  through  a  mountainous  country.  The 
scenery  is  wild  ind  most  picturesque.  On  both  sides 
great  granite  cliffs  rise  hundreds  of  feet  above  the  bed 
of  the  river,  which,  receiving  the  waters  of  the  Stewart 
from  the  north,  flows  on  toward  Dawson  City  with  great 
rapidity,  sometimes  as  high  as  seven  miles  an  hour.  At 
just  about  the  centre  of  the  present  mining  district  the 
Yukon  changes  its  course  to  the  northwest  and  continues 
in  this  direction  for  about  3CX)  miles,  or  to  a  point  near 
where  the  Porcupine  River  crosses  the  Arctic  Circle, 
and  empties  into  the  parent  stream.     The  width  on  the 


DIFFICULTY  EXPERIENCED. 


43 


Alaskan  side  of  the  boundary  line  averages  about  one 
mile,  but  as  it  approaches  the  Circle  it  spreads  out 
among  islands  at  the  mouth  of  the  Porcupine,  till 
it  is  several  miles  from  shore  to  shore.  A  good  deal  of 
difficulty  is  experienced  in  navigating  the  Yukon  at  this 
point  on  account  of  :he  shallowness  of  the  water  and 
the  sandy  formation  of  the  bed,  which  causes  the  channel 
to  shift  from  month  to  month  and  season  to  season. 

There  is  never  a  complete  thaw  of  the  soil  which 
makes  up  the  country  through  which  the  Yukon  flows. 
In  some  places  during  the  summer  months  the  ground 
is  soft  to  a  depth  of  three  or  four  feet,  but  in  less 
favored  places  eighteen  inches  is  a  maximum.  This 
layer  of  frozen  soil  extends  down  six  or  eight  feet,  and 
below  that  ice  is  rarely  encountered.  Various  explana- 
tions of  this  phenomena  have  been  advanced,  but  it  is 
generally  believed  to  be  due  to  poor  drainage  and  to  the 
dense  layer  of  moss  which  covers  the  entire  country, 
and  which  acts  as  a  blanket,  preventing  the  intense  heat 
of  the  midsummer  sun  from  penetrating  far  below  the 
surface,  and  also  keeping  in  the  cold. 


I 


I   ; 


; 


CHAPTER  III. 

ROUTES  TO  THE  ALASKAN    INTERIOR. 

Dyea  the  utse  of  supply  for  overland  travel — The  Chilkoot  Pass  and  Lake  Linde- 
man  trail — The  Stick  Indian  packers — Boat-building  on  the  lakes — Shooting 
Miles  Cafion,  White  Horse  and  Five-Finger  or  Rink  Rapids — Stacking  supplies 
by  the  way — The  White  and  Chilkat  Passes — Taku  Inlet  and  Fort  Macpherson 
routes— All  the  way  to  the  Klondike  by  water — Proposed  railways  to  pierce  the 
gold  fields. 

THE  miner  or  tourist  who  proposes  penetrating  the 
Alaskan  country  to  the  placer  diggings  of  the 
upper  Yukon  Basin  has,  broadly  speaking,  the  choice 
of  two  routes.  The  one  which  has  been  most  generally 
used,  up  to  within  a  very  recent  time,  is  all  the  way  by 
water.  Leaving  Puget  Sound,  or  San  Francisco  Bay, 
the  steamer  sails  out  to  the  northwest  across  the  Pacific 
Ocean  to  the  Aleutian  Islands,  between  which  a  channel 
leads  into  Bering  Sea.  Safe  in  these  latter  waters  the 
steamer  is  put  on  a  direct  northerly  course  to  Fort  Get 
There,  on  St.  Michael  Island,  which  lies  on  the  far  western 
coast  of  Alaska,  about  sixty-five  miles  above  the  mouth 
of  the  Yukon  River.  There  a  transfer  is  made  to  a 
light-draft  river  boat,  and  in  this  the  rest  of  the  voyage 
to  Circle  City,  Fort  Cudahy,  or  Dawson  is  made.  It  takes 
between  four  and  five  weeks  to  make  the  trip  in  this  way, 
under  the  most  favorable  circumstances,  and  owing  to  the 
fact  that  the  Yukon  is  frozen  hard  and  fast  during  eight 
months  of  the  year,  this  route  is  only  open  from  about 
June  I  St  to  the  middle  of  September. 

44 


ROUTE  TO  DAWSON  CITY. 


45 


The  other  route,  and  the  one  which  is  being  taken  by 
thousands  of  miners  and  others  at  the  present  time,  is 
part  of  the  way  overland.  Having  arrived  in  Juneau  by 
water  from  Seattle,  the  traveler  goes  up  Lynn  Canal  to 
Dyea,  or  Taiya,  as  the  Canadians  call  it.  This  town  is 
at  the  head  of  Chilkoot  Inlet,  which  runs  parallel  to  and 
to  the  east  of  Chilcat  Inlet,  the  latter  also  emptying  into 
Lynn  Canal.  At  Dyea  the  overland  journey  begins,  and 
just  beyond  its  gates  the  rise  to  the  Chilkoot  Pass,  3,500 
feet  above  the  sea,  commences.  Lake  Lindeman,  twenty- 
seven  miles  from  Dyea,  is  the  first  piece  of  water  met 
with  after  making  the  pass.  This  is  the  first  of  a  series 
of  lakes,  which,  with  their  connecting  streams,  must  be 
traversed  before  the  Thirty-Mile,  Lewes,  and  finally 
Yukon  Rivers  are  reached.  This,  in  brief,  is  the  route 
to  Dawson  City,  over  which  the  great  bulk  of  Alaskan 
gold-field  travel  is  now  making  its  way. 

There  are  numerous  conditions  which  must  necessarily 
affect  a  decision  as  to  choice  of  routes.  Perhaps  the  main 
argument  in  favor  of  the  overland  route  as  opposed  to 
the  all-water  one  is  the  difference  in  time  required  for 
the  two  journeys.  The  distance  from  Seattle  to  Dawson 
City  via  Juneau  and  the  lake  country  is  1,459  miles, 
while  to  take  the  ocean  course  requires  that  a  circuit  of 
4,200  miles  must  be  made.  The  time  actually  required 
to  cover  the  two  routes  is  not  governed  altogether  by 
the  number  of  miles  they  measure.  The  season  of  the 
year,  the  size  and  make-up  of  the  party,  the  state  of  the 
weather,  the  amount  of  baggage,  and  a  dozen  other 


46 


VESSELS  USED. 


items,  including  luck,  enter  in  to  make  the  nicest  calcu- 
lations go  wide  of  the  mark. 

Inasmuch  as  the  Yukon  route  is  out  of  the  question 
until  next  summer's  sun  shall  have  thawed  out  its  ice- 
bound channel,  the  greatest  interest  at  the  present  time 
attaches  to  the  overland  route  outlined  above  and  the 
manifold  variations  to  which  it  is  subject.  Both  San 
Francisco  and  Seattle  have  been  used  as  points  of  de- 
parture. The  regular  lines  of  vessels  plying  between 
these  ports  and  Juneau,  the  metropolis  of  Alaska,  have 
been  largely  supplemented.  Craft  of  every  description 
capable  of  living  on  the  high  seas  have  been  drafted 
into  the  service.  Barges,  tugs,  side-wheelers,  and 
merchantmen,  large  and  small,  have  been  brought  out 
of  retirement  and  made  to  do  valiant  service  in  speedmg 
the  bands  of  gold-seekers  on  to  the  newly-found  El 
Dorado.  The  excitement  along  the  wharves  where 
Alaskan-bound  vessels  have  been  moored  has  been 
intense.  As  a  usual  thing,  long  before  the  vessels  were 
ready  to  heave  anchor  the  docks  have  been  so  packed 
that  it  became  almost  impossible  for  a  person  to  wedge 
his  way  through  the  mass  of  people  so  as  to  get  a  look 
at  the  steamship. 

These  crowds  were  not  drawn  altogether  by  personal 
interest  or  friendship  for  those  who  were  about  to  take 
the  long,  tiresome,  and  dangerous  journey  into  the  Yukon 
gold  fields,  although  many  that  were  present  doubtless 
were  influenced  by  those  motives.  The  main  actuating 
sentiment,  however,  was  the  feverish  excitement  which 


FIRST  STAGES  OF  THE  JOURNEY. 


47 


seems  to  prevail  throughout  all  classes  of  the  commu- 
nity in  regard  to  the  Klondike. 

To  those  who  could  not  go  there  was  some  undefined 
satisfaction  in  looking  upon  the  more  lucky  ones,  who 
were  more  favored  by  fortune,  and  who  might  possibly 
be  the  future  millionaires  of  the  Coast. 

The  first  stages  of  the  Klondiker's  journey  have  been 
more  or  less  familiar  to  the  American  tourist  for  years. 
Leaving  the  terraced  slopes  of  Seattle  in  the  back- 
ground, the  good  ship  plies  her  way  down  Admiralty 
Inlet,  past  the  city  of  Everett,  and  into  Port  Townsend, 
the  United  States  port  of  entry  for  Puget  Sound.  Clear- 
ing from  this  port,  the  course  lies  directly  across  the 
Straits  of  Juan  de  Fuca  northward  to  Victoria,  B.  C. 
This  city,  the  capital  of  the  province,  occupies  a  com- 
manding site  at  the  southern  extremity  of  Vancouver 
Island.  Thence  the  course  runs  to  the  eastward  of 
Vancouver  Island  into  the  Gulf  of  Georgia,  and  threads 
its  way  through  narrow  channels  and  past  islands, 
named  and  nameless,  until,  passing  out  of  Chatham 
Sound,  the  vessel  once  more  enters  American  waters 
and  ties  up  for  a  short  while  at  the  Mary  Island  wharf 
lor  freight.  The  next  stop  made  is  at  Fort  Wrangel, 
which  is  reached  on  the  morning  of  the  fourth  day  out. 
Here  the  first  real  insight  into  Alaskan  life  is  gained. 
IThe  wharf  swarms  with  Indians  who  e  ' ^ose  for  sale  all 
[manner  of  wares,  while  the  crew  busies  itself  with  the 
idjustment  of  the  cargo.  The  next  stop  is  Juneau, 
"his  is  a  seaport  and  mining  town,  and  before  the  gold 


48 


DOCKING  FACILITIES. 


excitement  began  its  population  ranged  from  2,000  to 
3,000  souls.  It  has  schools  and  churches,  three  news- 
papers, electric  light  plant,  water-works,  two  excellent 
wharves,  mercantile  establishments  of  generous  propor- 
tions, good  hotels,  theatres,  paved  streets,  and  a  well- 
organized  fire  department. 

The  fare  from  Seattle  to  Juneau  is  $32,  first-class,  and 
ftiy  second-class.  From  the  same  port  direct  to  Dyea 
a  tariff  of  $40  is  asked  for  first-class  and  $2$  for  sec- 
ond-class passengers.  These  tickets  allow  for  150 
pounds  of  baggage.  Anything  over  this  up  to  1,200 
pounds  will  be  carried  at  the  rate  of  10  cents  per  pound. 
Having  been  landed  in  Juneau,  it  is  possible  to  take  any 
one  of  a  large  number  of  small  boats  and  continue  the 
journey  to  Dyea,  96  miles  further  up  the  Lynn 
Canal.  The  fare  on  these  boats  is  jjio.  The  average 
time  from  landing  to  landing  is  about  twenty-f  hours. 
The  docking  facilities  at  the  northern  port  are  not  of  a 
very  high  order,  and  when  the  waters  of  Dyea  Inlet, 
which  is  a  fresh-water  branch  of  Chilkoot  Inlet,  are 
rough,  considerable  difficulty  is  experienced  in  trans- 
ferring passengers  and  freight  from  the  boats  to  the 
shore.  The  present  bustling  town  was  originally  an 
Indian  village  and  trading  post,  and  lies  about  a  mile 
from  the  mouth  of  the  inlet,  in  a  beautiful  level  valley 
one  mile  wide.  The  traffic  of  the  place  has  increased  so 
rapidly  during  the  past  few  months  that  the  warehouse 
facilities  are  entirely  inadequate  to  meet  the  demand, 
and  by  far  the  largest  part  of  the  freight  destined  for 


A  DANGEROUS  CROSSING. 


49 


the  Klondike  country  has  to  be  stacked  on  the  low- 
rolling  beach  preparatory  to  its  being  carted  further  up 
the  trail  toward  Chilkoot  Pass. 

Dyea  Inlet  is  open  for  canoe  navigation  for  six  miles 
above  the  town,  but  as  the  packing  into  boats  hardly 
pays  for  the  short  run,  it  is  the  general  practice  either  to 
pack  it  on  horses  or  bring  small  carts  in  use  for  the  trip 
to  Sheep  Camp.  About  half  this  distance  is  through  a 
comparatively  level  valley,  the  surface  of  which  is  com- 
posed of  loose  glacial  rocks  of  all  sizes,  which  afford  a 
very  uncertain  footing  for  either  man  or  beast. 

There  is  so  little  soil  in  the  valley  after  the  first 
mile  or  two  above  Dyea  that  the  trees  and  vegeta- 
tion are  of  sparse  and  stunted  growth.  Along  the 
sides  of  the  mountains,  hov.  ever,  the  timber  is  heavy. 
The  latter  half  of  this  pack-trail  is  shelved  along  the 
side  of  a  cafton  several  hundred  feet  above  the 
stream  until  the  last  mile,  when  it  zigzags  down  to 
the  valley  again. 

In  winter  it  is  possible  to  use  pack  horses  to  within  a 
half-mile  of  the  summit  of  the  Pass.  The  distance  from 
Dyea  to  Sheep  Camp  is  twelve  miles,  and  the  rough 
trail  crosses  Dyea  Inlet  six  or  seven  times  in  that  dis- 
tance. The  waters  of  this  stream  spring  from  two  giant 
glaciers,  one  on  either  side  of  Chilkoot  Pass.  The 
fords  constitute  at  times  a  dangerous  feature  of  the  trip, 
as  men  have  been  drowned  crossing  this  furious  icy  tor- 
rent. Sheep  Camp  is  a  point  just  at  the  timber  line 
where  the  streams  from  the  two  glaciers  unite  and  form 

4 


50 


AVERAGE  LOAD  TO  CARRY. 


the  Dyea.  Here  travelers  often  have  to  wait  many  days 
for  fair  weather  to  cross  the  range. 

It  is  at  this  point  of  the  journey  that  the  Indian  packer 
is  brought  into  service.  For  the  actual  crossing  of  the 
Pass  he  is  absolutely  indispensable.  From  long  experi- 
ence in  crossing  and  recrossing  this  dar.gerous  defile  he 
knows  its  every  nook  and  cranny,  and  can  make  the 
ascent  and  descent  loaded  down  with  provisions  for  his 
employer  with  considerably  more  ease  than  that  same 
employer  can  without  the  embarrassments  of  a  pack. 

The  average  load  for  the  men  is  1 20  pounds,  but 
thirty  or  forty  pounds  more  is  not  uncommon,  r\nd  as 
an  example  which  may  be  taken  as  about  the  limit,  one 
of  these  men  of  burden  has  been  known  to  carry  an 
organ  weighing  220  pounds  over  the  Pass.  Not  as 
many  squaws  as  men  are  at  work,  and  their  loads 
average  a  little  lighter.  Generally  every  member  of 
the  family — and  this  may  be  understood  to  include  the 
dogs — carries  a  pack.  Every  Indian  wants  flour  or 
bacon,  because  they  constitute  the  most  compact  and 
easily  adjusted  load  to  carry ;  but  those  who  cannot  get 
fiour,  having  no  special  **  pull "  with  the  boss  packer,  have 
to  be  contented  with  camp-stoves,  guns,  shovels,  rope,  and 
other  awkward  things  to  carry.  The  dogs  are  loaded 
with  from  fifteen  to  fifty  pounds,  but  it  is  necessary  in 
some  places  for  them  to  have  assistance,  and  so  their 
master  puts  down  his  pack  and  carries  the  dog  and  his 
load  through  some  of  the  more  difficult  or  narrow  pas- 
sages among  the  rocks  or  across  streams. 


CACHEING  SUPPLIES  ALONG  THE  TRAIL. 


51 


The  Indian's  personal  belongings  that  he  usually  takes 
with  him  are  a  bag  of  dried  fish  and  a  blanket  and  pos- 
sibly a  small  bucket  or  a  tomato  can  for  a  teapot.  Dried 
salmon  is  both  bread  and  meat  to  him  and  also  to  his 
dog,  but  the  latter  gets  his  share  only  at  night.  There 
is  very  little  sunshine  in  the  life  of  a  Siwash  dog.  He 
is  overworked,  and  it  is  only  through  a  most  unaccounta- 
ble oversight  that  he  ever  gets  enough  to  eat. 

The  rate  which  the  Indians  charge  for  packing  is  a 
variable  quantity,  largely  governed  by  the  demand  for 
their  services.  For  some  years  past  the  price  has  been 
comparatively  stationary  at  14  cents  a  pound,  but  dur- 
ing the  laLt  few  months  this  has  gone  up  to  as  high  as 
$23  a  hundred.  And  at  the  latter  figure  every  packer 
in  the  district  has  been  kept  more  than  busy.  Thousands 
of  tons  of  provisions  and  freight  are  stalled  at  Dyea  and 
Sheep  Camp,  owing  to  the  scarcity  of  packers.  Quite 
a  few  of  the  on-rushing  miners  have  essayed  the  task 
of  doing  their  own  packing.  But  this  involves  return 
trips,  and  the  work  involved  is  very  arduous  to  one  un- 
accustomed to  it. 

A  striking  custom  which  is  worthy  of  note  is  that  of 
cacheing  supplies  along  the  trail.  Flour,  bacon,  blankets, 
or  whatever  it  may  happen  to  be  are  left  at  any  point  to 
suit  the  convenience  of  the  owner,  A  miner  leaves  a 
certain  portion  of  the  food  upon  which  his  life  depends 
and  goes  on  hundreds  of  miles  in  serene  confidence  that 
he  will  find  it  again  when  he  comes  back  in  the  fall. 
Sometimes  a  tent  or  fly  of  ducking  is  put  up  for  a  ahel- 


52 


DANGERS  DESCRIBED. 


ter.  If  It  is  intended  to  leave  the  cache  for  several 
months,  a  platform  on  four  posts  is  erected  eight  or  ten 
feet  above  the  ground  to  protect  it  from  dogs  and  wild 
animals.  Hungry  Indians  pass  this  food  every  day,  and 
sometimes  hungry  white  men,  but  it  is  rare  indeed  that 
a  cache  is  maliciously  violated.  Of  course  there  is  a 
feeling  of  their  dependence  upon  each  other  among  these 
isolated  men  of  the  Yukon.  If  any  one  should  come  into 
the  country  without  any  supplies  he  would  be  received 
with  poor  grace,  but  should  he  come  as  the  rest  do,  and 
by  any  misfortune  lose  his  outfit,  he  is  always  welcome 
to  a  share  anywhere  he  goes. 

The  trail  from  Sheep  Camp  becomes  steeper  and 
steeper  as  the  Pass  is  approached.  Vast  snow-fields 
have  to  be  traversed,  great  boulders  of  granite  have  to 
be  avoided  by  long  circular  cuts,  and  steep  ice-covered 
declivities  scaled  with  a  sure  foot.  The  trip  to  Lake 
Lindeman  is  described  as  possessing  all  the  dangers  and 
excitement  of  mountain  climbing  among  glaciers,  snow, 
ice,  and  boulders. 

Tvvo  miles  above  Sheep  Camp  is  a  very  interesting 
glacier  which  has  no  local  name.  Its  depletion  from 
crumbling  and  melting  has  been  faster  than  the  onward 
progress  of  the  whole  mass,  and  consequently  it  has 
receded  to  a  point  2,000  feet  higher  than  the  creek. 
The  front  wall  or  face  of  it  is  200  or  300  feet  high,  and 
has  a  width  of  a  half  mile.  The  glacier  is  almost  unap- 
proachable. 

The  great  body  of  ice  creaks  and  groans  almost  con- 


:l 


*  •  •,'i 


Street  Scene  in  Dawson  City. 


. 

1 

^ 

'.1.  ;;i.;v 

1 

1 

t:     ^^^M 

,1 

ft 

I 

"'.ill 
.     1 

fr 


l^LTM 


INTERIOR  op  Miner's  Cahin,  pAwsojf  ^iTy, 


ENTRANCE  TO  THE  GOLD  FIELDS. 


55 


tinually.  At  times  the  disturbance  increases  to  such  an 
extent  as  to  make  one  think,  at  a  distance  of  two  miles 
away,  that  the  whole  thing  was  tumbling  down  the 
mountain.  The  color  of  the  superficial  part  of  the 
glacier  is  pale  blue,  but  the  fissures,  with  their  varying 
depths,  run  from  blue  to  the  deepest  indigo  color.  From 
the  foot  of  this,  which  has  been  called  Sheep  Camp  Gla- 
cier, may  be  had  a  very  comprehensive  general  view  of 
Chilkoot  Pass.  For  two  miles  the  course  extends 
straight  away  and  upward  through  fields  of  perpetual 
snow  and  seems  to  terminate  at  dark  stone  walls.  The 
summit  of  the  pass  is  not  visible,  as  the  defile  turns  to 
the  left  and  then  abruptly  to  the  right  through  gateways 
of  granite.  In  many  of  the  depressions  around  the 
higher  points  of  this  part  of  the  coast  range  there  are 
ice  caps  or  glaciers,  but  they  are  rarely  visible  from  the 
valleys  immediately  below. 

Chilkoot  Pass  is  3,500  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 
The  nearest  settlement  to  the  summit  is  Stone  House, 
which  is  2,400  feet  below,  and  the  real  struggle  lies  be- 
tween these  two  points.  The  view  from  the  top  is  not 
an  extended  one.  Crater  Lake,  500  feet  below,  can  be 
seen.  It  is  the  source  of  that  arm  of  the  Yukon  which 
affords  the  entrance  to  the  gold  fields  via  Chilkoot  Pass. 
Beyond  the  little  lake,  less  than  a  mile  in  extent,  is  a  low 
line  of  hills,  and  in  the  distance  rises  a  range  of  bare 
mountains.  A  dim  trail  leads  down  the  hill  and  across 
the  frozen  lake,  disappearing  into  the  caflon  beyond. 

The  abrupt  passages  near  the  summit  are  better 


r 


f  i 


I  i 


56 


NO  TIME  FOR  REST.      , 


accomplished  by  hauling  supplies  on  sleds.  After  the 
summit  is  passed,  if  the  journey  is  continued  before  the 
ice  breaks  up,  it  often  happens  that  long  distances  may 
be  made  by  means  of  sails  raised  on  improvised  masts 
on  the  sled.  The  sledge  should  be  about  seven  feet  four 
inches  long,  seven  inches  high,  and  sixteen  inches  wide, 
of  strong  but  light  timber,  and  the  runners  shod  with 
either  brass  or  steel,  the  former  being  preferable,  be- 
cause the  sled  will  glide  over  the  snow  more  smoothly  in 
intensely  cold  weather,  while  steel  is  inclined  to  grind 
and  lug  very  much,  as  if  it  were  being  hauled  over  sand. 
When  the  weather  is  cold,  if  water  is  taken  into  the 
mouth  and  held  a  moment,  then  blown  over  the  runner, 
a  coating  will  immediately  form,  and  if  this  process  is 
repeated  when  it  becomes  a  iittle  worn  off,  one  will  be 
surprised  to  find  how  much  smoother  and  easier  the  sled 
will  draw.  It  is  preferable  to  use  the  Eskimo  mode  of 
making  sledges  for  Yukon  traveling.  They  use  no  nails 
or  bolts,  binding  the  joints  together  with  strong  cords. 
There  is  much  less  danger  of  breaking,  if  made  in  this 
way,  should  the  sled  be  overturned,  as  the  joints  will 
yield  when  thus  tied  together. 

From  the  summit  to  the  head  of  Lake  Lindeman  the 
distance  is  nine  miles.  The  descent  for  the  first  half- 
mile  is  steep,  then  a  gradual  slope  to  the  lake.  But 
there  is  little  time  for  resting  and  none  for  dreaming,  as 
the  edge  of  the  timber,  where  the  camp  must  be  made, 
is  seven  miles  from  the  summit.  Taking  the  camping 
outfit  and  sufficient  provisions  for  four  or  five  days,  the 


A   NEW   FEATURE. 


57 


sleio^h  is  loaded,  the  rest  of  the  outfit  is  packed  up,  or 
buried  in  the  snow,  shovels  being  stuck  up  to  mark  the 
spot.  This .  precaution  is  necessary,  for  storms  come 
suddenly  and  rage  with  fury  along  these  mountain  crests. 
The  first  half-mile  or  more  is  made  in  quick  time,  then 
over  six  or  seven  feet  of  snow  the  prospector  drags  his 
sleigh  CO  where  there  is  wood  for  his  camp-fire.  At 
times  this  is  no  easy  task,  especially  if  the  weather  be 
stormy,  for  the  winds  blow  the  new  fallen  snow  about  so 
as  completely  to  cover  the  track  made  by  the  man  but 
litde  ahead;  at  other  times  during  fine  weather  and  with 
a  hard  crust  on  the  snow,  it  is  only  a  pleasant  run  from 
the  Pass  down  to  the  first  camp  in  the  Yukon  Basin.  In 
all  except  the  most  sheltered  situations  the  tent  is  neces- 
sary for  comfort,  and  the  stove  gives  better  satisfaction 
than  the  camp-fire,  as  it  burns  but  little  wood,  is  easier 
to  cook  over,  and  does  not  poison  the  eyes  with  smoke. 
It  is  a  noticeable  fact  that  there  are  fewer  cases  of  snow 
blindness  among  those  who  use  stoves  than  among  those 
who  crowd  around  a  smoking  camp-fire  for  cooking  or 
for  warmth.  Comfort  in  making  a  trip  of  this  kind  will 
depend,  in  a  great  measure,  upon  the  conveniences  of 
camping,  suitable  clothing,  and  light,  warm  bedding. 
Yes,  upon  provisions,  too,  though  often  more  depends 
upon  the^cook  than  upon  what  is  in  the  larder. 

Once  on  Lake  Lindeman  a  new  feature  of  the  jour- 
ney presents  itself.  Those  who  make  the  trip  in  sum- 
mer will  find  the  ice  out  of  the  lakes,  but  if  an  early  start 
were  made  they  would  be  able  to  cross  Lake  Lindeman 


58 


CONSTRUCTION  OF  BOATS. 


: 


and  the  other  lakes  of  the  chain  by  means  of  ice  boats 
temporarily  constructed.  After  the  ist  of  May  the 
lake  course  opens  up  and  fairly  good  boats  are  a 
necessity. 

Until  the  last  year  it  was  necessary  for  every  miner  to 
carry  a  whip-saw  with  him  with  which  to  cut  the  timber 
for  his  craft,  and  whip-sawing  was  one  of  the  picturesque, 
although  not  especially  inviting,  incidents  of  the  trip. 
But  a  saw-mill  has  recently  been  constructed.  The  only 
timber  used  in  the  construction  of  boats  on  the  lakes  is  a 
local  kind  of  spruce.  In  the  first  place,  the  timber  has 
to  be  discovered,  and  this  is  not  the  easiest  thing  in  the 
world,  because  the  timber  around  the  lake  is  nearly  all 
burned  off,  and  there  is  none  suitable  for  boat  building. 
After  the  timber  has  been  found  comes  the  construction 
of  a  saw  pit.  To  construct  a  saw  pit  it  is  necessary  to 
find  trees  so  arranged  as  to  support  cross-pieces,  the 
stumps  being  cut  at  a  proper  distance  from  the  ground 
so  as  to  take  the  notched  cross-pieces  in.  This  requires 
four  trees  about  equi-distant  from  one  another,  and  the 
cross-pieces  have  to  be  fixed  very  firmly  in  place  so  as 
not  to  slip,  as  the  log  which  is  to  be  sawed  is  likely  other- 
wise to  be  the  cause  of  an  accident.  Often  a  good 
woodsman  will  be  able  to  fell  the  tree  which  is  to  be 
sawed  in  such  a  way  that  it  will  fall  into  the  pit,  which 
saves  the  time  and  trouble  of  skidding  the  log  up  and 
rolling  it  in  place  after  felling,  which  is  frequently  a  very 
difficult  task.  From  the  slabs  and  boards  thus  roughly 
made  the  flat-boats  are  constructed,  upon  which  the  miners 


DANGEROUS  WATER. 


59 


ice  so  as 


traverse  the  chain  of  lakes  extending  north  from  Chilkoot 
Pass. 

From  the  head  of  Lake  Lindeman,  on  both  sides  to 
Lake  Bennett,  the  general  character  of  the  country  is 
mountainous,  with  narrow  benches  skirting  the  shore. 
The  distance  across  Lake  Lindeman  is  nearly  eix  miles, 
and  from  the  foot  of  this  lake  about  fifty  yards  of  a 
portage  is  made  of  the  one-mile  river  to  Lake  Bennett, 
because  this  stream  is  very  crooked  and  full  of  rocks, 
making  boat  passage  difficult  and  dangerous. 

Lake  Bennett  is  twenty-six  miles  in  length  and  is 
separated  from  Tagish  Lake  by  a  six-mile  river.  This 
lake  is  some  fifteen  miles  long,  and  empties  into 
Mud  Lake  through  an  outlet  three  miles  long.  Mud 
Lake  is  about  ten  miles  in  length,  and  at  the  foot  of  it 
open  water  is  usually  found  in  April.  Open  water  will 
probably  be  passed  before  reaching  this  point  in  the 
rivers  connecting  the  lakes,  but  firm  ice  at  the  sides 
afT  .'ds  good  sledding;  but  at  the  foot  of  Mud  Lake  a 
raft  or  boat  must  be  built.  Dry  timber  can  be  found 
along  the  shores  with  which  to  build  a  raft,  which  will 
take  everything  to  the  Lewes  River  Canon,  about  forty 
miles  to  the  northwest.  The  river  cuts  through  high 
banks  of  cement  and  sand,  where  millions  of  martins 
have  their  nests.  The  little  birds  have  usually  bur- 
rowed into  a  stratum  of  sand  which  lies  just  under  the 
crest  of  the  perpendicular  bank.  For  mile  after  mile 
the  coping  of  this  canon  is  decorated  with  a  frieze  of 
martins*  nests.     Usually  there  is  a  single  line  of  these 


I  I 


60 


PASSING  THE  RAPIDS. 


holes  only  a  few  inches  apart,  but  somelimes  it  hap- 
pened that  there  are  one  or  two  lower  deposits  of  the 
same  quality  of  sand,  and  wherever  the  material  oc- 
curs it  is  always  utilized  by  the  martins.  For  hundreds 
of  miles  down  the  river  there  is  an  almost  unbroken 
throng  of  these  little  fellows,  and  they  seemed  to  subsist 
wholly  on  mosquitoes. 

Miles  Canon  is  the  first  piece  of  dangerous  water 
encountered.  Nineteen  men  have  lost  their  lives  during 
the  last  three  years  in  the  three  miles  of  the  Lewes 
River,  which  include  this  pass  and  the  White  Horse 
Rapids.  The  canon  is  about  fifty  yards  wide  with  per- 
pendicular granite  walls  on  either  side.  About  midway 
there  is  an  enlargement  of  the  bed,  which  causes  the 
formation  of  a  very  treacherous  whirlpool.  The  natives 
believe  that  anything  caught  in  this  suction  never  re- 
appears. Its  effect  is  to  throw  the  water  upon  a  central 
ride.  To  successfully  pass  these  rapids  one  must  keep 
his  boat  on  top  of  this  central  crest.  After  emerging 
from  the  canon  for  about  two  miles  the  river  runs 
through  a  flat  country,  and  then  it  is  crossed  at  right 
angles  by  a  chain  of  hills  similar  to  that  at  the  canon, 
and  again  the  river  is  hemmed  in  and  is  forced  through 
a  similar  narrow  and  contracted  outlet.  White  Horse 
Rapids,  although  in  this  case  the  water  is  confined  for 
only  a  very  short  distance.  At  the  rapids  the  hills  do 
not  approach  very  near  to  the  river,  but  there  is  a 
margin,  a  plane  of  rock  on  either  side,  where  one  may 
approach  and  almost  touch  hands  with  those  shooting 


A  DROP  TOO  MUCH. 


6i 


the  rapids  in  a  boat.  It  is  in  the  apparent  advantage 
that  those  projecting  shelves  ofter  that  the  danger  lies. 
In  these  three  miles  the  river  bed  drops  thirty-two  feet. 

Two  portages  are  made  at  White  Horse,  both  of  them 
short  ones.  The  landing  for  the  first  is  on  the  left  or 
west  bank.  Sometimes  a  boat  can  be  lowered  through 
the  first  pitch  with  a  rope,  but  the  portage  is  safer. 
Below  the  portage  the  boat  is  paddled  to  the  head  of  the 
last  drop.  This  is  " a  drop  too  much"  for  any  boatman 
to  run.  The  channel  closes  in  and  the  water  goes  down 
through  with  an  angry  roar.  Fortunately,  however,  the 
portage  is  only  about  ico  feet  long. 

The  rest  of  the  river  run  to  Lake  Lebarge  is  clear. 
Lake  Lebarge  itself  is  thirty-one  miles  long  and  five 
miles  wide.  It  is  usual  to  steer  straight  for  the  island  in 
the  middle,  and  under  its  shelter  work  around  to  the 
east  or  west  shore,  according  to  the  direction  of  the 
wind. 

From  the  foot  of  Lake  Lebarge  to  the  mouth  of  the 
inflowing  Hootalinqua  or  Teslintoo  River,  the  current  is 
rapid  and  there  are  many  rocks,  but  it  is  not  dangerous. 
Below  the  junction  with  the  Hootalinqua  the  river  is 
large  and  calm,  and  there  is  easy  going  for  about  130 
miles  to  the  Five-Finger  Rapids.  This  is  one  of  the  two 
or  three  obstructions  that  interfere  with  the  free  naviga- 
tion of  the  river.  A  ledge  of  rock  lies  directly  across 
the  stream  with  four  or  five  openings  in  it,  that  afford  a 
scanty  outlet  for  the  congested  current.  The  largest 
passage  and  the  one  commonly  used  is  the  one  at  the 


62 


SHOOTING  THE  RAPIDS. 


right  shore.  There  is  a  considerable  fall,  but  the  water 
is  not  badly  broken,  the  gateway  being  succeeded  by 
several  big  waves,  over  which  a  boat  glides  with  great 
rapidity,  but  with  a  smooth  and  even  motion.  Shooting 
this  rapid  is  an  exhilarating  experience,  but  with  careful 
management  is  not  considered  dangerous,  as  there  is  no 
record  of  any  one  being  drowned  here.  It  is  well  to 
have  the  boat  fairly  light  before  running  the  rapids. 

The  run  should  then  be  made,  landing  on  the  right- 
hand  side.  Following  the  right-hand  shore  all  the  way 
for  about  five  miles.  Rink  Rapids,  one  and  a  half  miles 
in  length  (caused  by  a  chain  of  rocks  reaching  nearly 
across  the  river)  are  reached.  The  right-hand  side  or 
east  shore  must  be  followed  closely  all  the  way.  From 
this  point  the  river  is  easy  to  navigate  to  its  mouth. 
About  fifty-five  miles  below  the  foot  of  Rink  Rapids  old 
Fort  Selkirk  is  reached.  It  is  situated  near  the  conflu- 
ence of  Pelly  and  Lewes  Rivers.  Here  a  trading  post  is 
run  by  an  old-timer  named  Harper,  and  this  is  also  a 
winter  port  for  steamboats  plying  on  the  Yukon  and  its 
tributaries.  The  fort  was  pillaged  and  burned  by  coast 
Indians  in  1852,  and  ruins  of  what  were  once  chimneys 
only  being  seen. 

Continuing  the  journey,  Stewart  River  is  passed  on 
the  right ;  then  White  River  on  the  left,  so  named  on 
account  of  its  milky-looking  water ;  the  next  tributary 
on  the  same  side  is  Sixty-Mile  Creek,  so  called  on 
account  of  its  being  considered  sixty  miles  above  Fort 
Reliance.     Here  the  Yukon  is  over  two  miles  in  width. 


DISTANCES  FROM  DYEA.  5* 

The  Klondike  River  and  Dawson  City  are  the  next 
points  of  interest. 

James  Ogilvie,  surveyor  for  the  Dominion  Govern- 
ment, has  made  the  following  table  of  distances  from 
Dyea  or  Ty-a,  using  ;;he  Canadian  name : 

MILKS. 

Headof  canoe  navigatiot I,  Ty-a  River, 5.90 

Forks  of  Ty-a  River 8.38 

Summit  of  Chilkoot  Pass, i4-7<^ 

Landing  at  Lake  Lindeman, 23.06 

P^oot  of  Lake  Lindeman, 23.49 

Head  of  Lake  Bennett, 28.09 

Foot  of  Lake  Bennett, 53-85 

Foot  of  Cariboo  Crossing 5644 

Foot  of  Tagish  Lake, 73-25 

Head  of  Marsh  Lake, 78.15 

Foot  of  Marsh  Lake, 97-21 

Headof  Miles  Caflon, 1 22.94 

Foot  of  Miles  Cafion, 123.56 

Head  of  White  Horse  Rapids, 124.95 

Foot  of  White  Horse  Rapids, 125.93 

Tahkeena  River, 139-92     . 

Head  of  Lake  I^barge, *  53-^7 

Foot  of  Lake  Lebarge 184.22  •''• 

Teslintoo  River, 215.88 

Big  Salmon  River 249.33    • 

Little  Salmon  River, ,  285.54 

Five-Finger  Rapids, 344-83 

Felly  River, 403.29 

White  River 499-1 1 

Stewart  River, 508.91  ' 

Sixty-Mile  Creek, 530-4i 

Dawson, 575-7° 

Of  all  the  overland  routes  to  the  Yukon  gold  fields 
the  one  via  the  Chilkoot  Pass  has  been  the  most  used  by 
the  miners.     This  is  the  oldest  of  the  many  routes,  and 


jifi 


III    ni 


! 


64 


A  NEW  TRAIL. 


having  been  explored  frequently  by  official  expeditions 
of  one  kind  and  another  vhe  objections  to  it  are  pretty 
well  understood,  and  many  of  its  hardest  places  have 
been  smoothed  over.  All  along  this  route  enterprising 
individuals  have  made  improvements  for  the  benefit  of 
those  who  use  it.  The  boarding-house  at  Sheep  Camp, 
where  meals  are  served  at  50  cents  apiece,  and  the  saw- 
mill on  Lake  Lindeman,  where  boards  are  sold  at  jjio 
a  thousand  feet  attest  this  fact. 

The  trail  leading  up  over  White  Pass  it  is  believed 
will  eventually  very  largely  supersede  the  Chilkoot  route. 
By  taking  this  road  the  steej  declivity  just  to  the  south 
of  the  Chilkoot  Pass  will  be  avoided.  For  even  an 
Indian  this  is  a  hard  bit  of  going,  and  especially  when 
loaded  down  with  from  one  to  two  hundred  pounds  of 
provisions.  At  the  present  time  the  argonauts  at  Dyea 
seeking  an  entrance  to  the  gold  fields  are  at  logger- 
heads as  to  the  relative  merits  of  these  two  trails. 
Skaguay,  the  starting  point  for  the  White  Pass,  is  five 
miles  distant  from  Dyea,  on  the  Skaguay  River.  The 
trail  runs  parallel  with  Chilkoot  Pass,  and  at  no  great 
distance  from  it. 

Though  the  land  carriage  is  somewhat  longer  by  this, 
it  appears  to  present  less  difficulty  ior  the  construction 
of  a  practical  trail  or  road.  The  distance  from  the  coast 
to  the  summit  is  seventeen  miles.  Five  miles  of  this  are 
level  bottom  land  thickly  timbered.  The  next  nine  miles 
are  in  a  narrow  canon-like  valley,  where  heavy  work  is 
encountered  in  constructing  the  trail.     The  remaining 


ROUTES  COMPARED. 


65 


distance  of  three  miles  to  the  summit  is  comparatively 
easy.  The  summit  has  an  altitude  of  2,600  feet.  Be- 
yond .the  summit  a  wide  valley  is  entered,  and  its  descent 
to  the  first  lake  is  not  more  than  a  hundred  feet.  The 
mountains  rapidly  decrease  in  height  and  abruptness 
after  the  summit  is  passed,  and  the  valley  divides,  one 
branch  leading  to  the  head  of  Windy  Arm  of  Tagish 
Lake ;  the  other,  down  which  the  water  drains,  going  to 
Taku  arm  of  the  same  lake. 

This  route  being  over  level  country  as  compared 
with  that  over  Chilkoot  Pass,  is  much  better  adapted 
to  the  use  of  pack-horses  and  trains.  It  has  been  re- 
ported that  parties  with  horses  have  been  able  to  get  all 
the  way  through  to  Lake  Bennett.  Firmly  convinced 
that  it  will  eventually  prove  the  most  feasible,  about  nine 
hundred  miners  are  now  working  on  this  trail,  filling  in 
its  bogs,  cutting  away  boulders  where  they  obstruct  the 
path,  -^nd  putting  things  in  shape  for  heavy  travel. 
When  finished,  two  days  is  the  estimated  time  for  the 
trip  over  this  route. 

A  couple  of  Englishmen  have  erected  wharfs  at  Ska- 
guay,  for  the  use  of  which  they  charge  $2.50  a  ton. 
Rather  than  pay  this  many  of  the  miners  take  their 
freight  from  the  steamers  on  rudely-constructed  rafts 
and  stack  it  on  the  beach.  It  has  been  reported  that 
horses  and  catde  are  thrown  overboard  and  made  to 
swim  ashore. 

The  Canadians  put  great  faith  in  the  trail  named  after 
the  Stickine  River.     A  grant  has  just  been  made  by  the 


66 


A  PACK  TRAIN  ESTABLISHED. 


1" 


Dominion  Government  to  J.  C.  Galbreath  to  cut  through 
a  distance  of  1 50  miles  from  the  headwaters  of  Telegraph 
Creek  to  Lake  TesHn  to  make  the  route  feasible.  Enter- 
ing the  Stickine  River  just  above  Fort  Wrangel,  this 
route  goes  up  that  river  175  miles  to  Telegraph  Creek, 
and  then  almost  due  north  along  Telegraph  Creek  to 
the  end  of  canoe  navigation. 

From  this  point  to  Lake  Teslin,  a  distance  of  150 
miles,  the  trail  has  been  cut  and  a  pack  train  established. 
The  steamer  "  Alaska "  is  now  carrying  passengers  to 
Telegraph  Creek.  The  country  over  which  the  trail 
runs  is  reported  to  be  a  comparatively  level  plateau  or 
tableland,  and  very  few  of  the  hardships  to  be  encountered 
by  miners  traveling  the  Juneau  route  are  to  be  met  with. 
From  Lake  Teslin  everything  is  described  by  members 
of  Galbreath's  party  as  being  smooth  and  open-water 
traveling,  without  a  break  clear  down  through  the  outlet 
of  the  lake,  Teslintoo  or  Hootalinqua  River,  into  the 
Lewes  and  Yukon  Rivers. 

A  route  from  the  head  of  Taku  Inlet  was  explored  by 
the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Survey  thirty  years  ago ; 
and  emissaries  of  the  fur  traders  and  occasional  pros- 
pectors kept  open  the  knowledge  of  the  Indian  trail. 
The  first  modern  account  of  it,  however,  was  given  by 
the  late  Lieutenant  Schwatka,  U.  S.  A.,  who  re-explored 
the  route  in  1891  during  his  third  and  last  trip  to  Alaska. 
With  him  went  Dr.  C.  Willard  Hayes  of  the  U.  S. 
Geological  Survey,  two  photographers,  and  a  large  party 
of  helpers.  , 


.:V 


EXPERIENCES  DESCRIBED. 


67 


Leaving  Juneau  in  the  beginning  of  May  of  that  year 
accompanied  by  eighteen  natives,  Schwatka  went  through 
Taku  and  traveled  up  the  Taku  River  with  his  party  in 
canoes  until  they  reached  the  headwaters  of  that  stream. 
Several  manuscripts  in  which  Lieutenant  Schwa  .ka  de- 
scribes his  experiences  are  extant.  In  one  of  these  he 
says: 

"We  reached  the  headwaters  of  the  Taku  fifteen  days 
after  we  had  started  out  from  Juneau,  taking  plenty 
of  time  over  our  trip.  We  went  up  as  far  along  the 
headwater  stream  as  we  could  get,  and  only  stopped 
when  our  frail  canoes  grounded  on  the  soft  gravel  and 
could  go  no  farther.  Although  I  had  left  civilization 
with  the  distinct  belief  in  the  reports  brought  in  to  me 
by  Indians  concerning  the  existence  of  a  trail  over  table- 
lands between  the  Taku  and  Lake  Teslin,  it  was  with  a 
feeling  of  great  relief  that  I  discovered  these  reports  to 
be  correct.  Each  of  our  Indians  carried  200  pounds, 
and  we  all  started  out  with  our  feet  wrapped  in  rags  of 
moose  and  caribou  skins.  We  had  many  strange  expe- 
riences on  this  trip,  coming  across  most  peculiar  changes 
in  the  contour  of  the  country.  Led  by  three  Indians 
who  had  been  with  me  on  my  trip  in  1888  when  I  left 
Juneau  for  Lake  Lindeman,  we  soon  struck  a  trail,  and 
for  two  days  going  was  very  light.  Not  knowing  what 
we  would  have  to  encounter  before  we  got  to  the  end  of 
our  journey,  I  was  content  to  made  ten  miles  per  day. 

"On  the  third  day  out,  however,  we  found  ourselves 
crossing  such  dangerous  country  that  it  was  impossible 


68 


DANGERS   ENCOUNTERED. 


r  ■ 


to  travel  faster  than  five  miles  in  twelve  hours  of  travel- 
ing. The  mosquitoes  were  terrible,  and  bit  our  ears, 
eyes,  and  all  exposed  parts  so  much  that  we  had  to  stop 
for  hours  at  a  time  to  try  to  get  relief  from  their  bites. 
The  Indians,  with  their  heavy  loads,  suffered  consider- 
ably in  the  latter  part  of  the  trip,  their  feet  being  badly 
swollen  and  galled.  On  the  morning  of  the  fifteenth 
day  out  from  Taku  we  reached  a  mountain  pass,  about 
5,000  feet  high,  and  on  turning  down  into  a  sharp  de- 
clivity came  in  sight  of  Lake  Tes'l  Heen,  as  the  Indians 
call  it.  It  looked  like  a  long,  narrow  strip  of  blue  as  far 
as  we  could  see.  That  night  we  reached  the  water, 
unslung  our  portable  canoes,  and  were  once  more  afloat. 
The  first  use  we  made  of  our  new  position  was  to  cap- 
ture ptarmigan  and  fish,  a  welcome  relief  from  the 
carried  canned  provisions  we  had  lived  on  so  long." 

A  second  letter  of  Schwatka's,  written  to  a  friend  in 
Juneau,  and  dispatched  by  Indians,  over  the  tedious 
route  he  had  already  compassed,  contained  the  fol- 
lowing: 

"  When  Naniwak  starts  with  this  letter,  we  will  be 
away  up  the  Hootalinqua  River  in  our  canoes.  I  will 
probably  go  on  to  the  Thirty-Mile,  come  down  into  Lake 
Labarge,  and  then  on  through  the  Fifty-Mile  River  and 
Mud  Lake  into  Bennett,  where  I  will  continue  through 
Lindeman,  and  join  you  in  civilization  once  more 
down  my  old  stamping  ground  through  the  Chilkoot. 
The  result  of  my  exploration,  so  far,  I  am  confident,  will 
establish  for  the   people   of  Juneau   a  route   into   the 


RESULT  OF  EXPLORATION. 


69 


Yukon  country  far  superior  to  any  yet  discovered,  far 
shorter  and  far  more  easy  of  action.  As  far  as  that  old 
Stickine  River  route  that  so  many  people  run  wild  over 
is  concerned,  I  think  that  our  trail  from  the  headwaters 
of  the  Taku  knocks  it  out  of  consideration  completely. 
To  show  the  difference  in  the  time  taken  from  the  head- 
waters to  Lake  Taku  by  men  who  know  this  newly- 
discovered  trail,  and  by  men  tha't  don't,  you  ought  to 
know  that  last  year  a  party  of  miners  took  eighty  days 
to  make  it,  but  they  had  no  trail  to  guide  them,  and 
simply  trusted  to  luck.  We  had  the  bulge  on  the  trail, 
however,  and  did  it  in  exactly  fifteen  days.  They  can 
send  their  exploration  parties  out  wherever  they  want 
to,  but  I  know  enough  about  Alaska  to  be  certain  that 
the  Taku  route  is  the  only  way  that  people  of  Juneau 
will  want  to  get  to  the  Yukon  country,  when  once  they 
understand  its  immense  advantages.  I  reckon  that  it 
beats  the  Stickine  route  forty  days,  besides  being  better 
traveling,  and  you  must  consider  that  even  the  old 
Stickine  route  beats  my  first  run  up  through  Lake 
Bennett  just  as  much.  The  new  Indian  pass  can  easily 
be  made  practicable  for  pack-trains  or  wagon  road,  and, 
if  necesFary,  can  be  made  to  tap  the  Canadian  Pacific 
Railway  as  well  as  the  Yukon  River  country.  The  mos- 
quitoes still  stay  with  us,  and  are  committing  terrible 
ravages  on  every  one  of  our  party.  Nothing  seems  to 
keep  them  away." 

After  reaching  Lake  Teslin,  it  will  be  noticed   that 
Schwatka's  route  covers  the  same  ground  as  the  Stickine 


:o 


SCHWATKA'S  TRAIL. 


trail,  the  great  difference  between  the  two  being  in  the 
manner  in  which  they  reach  the  foot  of  the  lake.  There 
seems  to  be  a  great  deal  of  discrepancy  between  the 
accounts  given  of  the  nature  of  the  tablelands  lying 
south  of  the  lake  by  Mills  and  Schwatka.  if  what  Mills 
says  is  correct,  then  the  topographical  features  of  the 
country  must  change  in  an  alarming  manner  between 
very  short  points  of  distance,  although  even  his  roseate 
announcement  about  the  conditions  discovered  by  Call- 
breath's  party  does  not  obliterate  the  fact  that  their  route 
is  considerably  longer  than  Schwatka's. 

After  leaving  Lake  Teslin,  no  serious  obstacle  is  en- 
countered, although  the  water  toward  its  mouth  is  swift. 
From  there  the  canoes  run  down  the  Lewes  River,  join- 
ing the  regular  line  of  overland  travel. 

Schwatka  returned  from  the  Hootalinqua  up  through 
Lake  Bennett,  and  reached  Juneau  safely  in  the  latter 
part  of  1 89 1,  but  stayed  there  only  two  days,  leaving 
for  the  south  by  steamer  before  he  had  formulated  any 
report  of  the  new  trail  to  Lake  Teslin.  He  never  re- 
turned to  Alaska,  dying  at  Portland,  Ore.,  in  Novem- 
ber, 1892.  There  is  no  doubt  that  several  miners 
who  went  into  the  Taku  River  country  last  year  followed 
over  this  path  to  reach  Lake  Teslin,  guided  in  all  proba- 
bility by  members  of  the  same  Indian  tribe  as  had  piloted 
Schwatka  through. 

A  route  to  Dawson  City,  which  was  used  some  during 
the  last  summer,  leads  up  over  the  Chilcat  Pass,  at  the 
head  of  Chilcat  Inlet,  and  thence  follows  what  has  been 


ng  in  the 
.  There 
ween  the 
ids  lying 
hat  Mills 
is  of  the 
between 
5  roseate 
by  Call- 
eir  route 

:le  is  en- 
is  swift, 
'er,  join- 

throupfh 
e  latter 

leavincr 
ted  any 
2ver  re- 
^ovem- 

miners 
allowed 

proba- 
piloted 


duringr 
at  the 
s  been 


1 1  ■ 


DALTON'S  TRAIL. 


73 


■  if 


dubbed  Dalton's  trail  entirely  overland  to  the  Yukon 
River,  just  below  old  Fort  Selkirk.  It  is  particularly 
adapted  for  driving  cattle  into  the  interior. 

Quite  a  number  of  miners  started  for  the  Klondike 
this  summer  over  the  Hudson  Bay  trunk  line.  This  line 
of  traffic  has  been  in  use  for  a  greater  part  of  the  way 
for  over  one  hundred  years. 

Leaving  St.  Paul  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning,  by 
the  Canadian  Pacific  Railway,  the  international  bound- 
ary at  Portal  will  be  crossed  at  four  o'clock  the  next 
morning.  The  following  morning  Calgary  is  reached, 
where  the  branch  line  of  the  Canadian  Pacific  north- 
ward is  reached.  After  traveling  to  Edmonton,  a  point 
200  miles  from  Calgary  and  1,772  miles  from  Chicago, 
the  rail  portion  of  the  journey  ends.  The  railroad  fare 
from  Chicago  is  $53.65. 

A  stage  ride  of  96  miles  will  bring  one  to  Athabasca 
Landing.  Here  is  to  be  found  a  continuous  waterway 
for  canoe  travel  to  Fort  Macpherson,  near  the  mouth  of 
the  Mackenzie  River,  where  Peel  River  enters  from  the 
south.  From  Edmonton  to  Fort  Macpherson  is  about 
1,816  miles. 

So  far  as  navigation  is  concerned  it  would  be  feasible 
to  float  down  these  rivers  and  lakes  to  Fort  Macpherson 
or  to  the  Arctic  Ocean.  The  Hudson  Bay  Company 
have  long  had  a  service  of  steamboats  the  whole  distance 
during  the  short  summer,  and  will  take  any  quantity  of 
passengers  or  freight,  for  which  they  have  room.  Indian 
canoe  routes  and  trails  lead  overland  from  Fort  Macpher- 


i  A 


74 


FEASIBLE  ROUTES. 


son  to  another  post  on  Bell  River,  and  up  that  stream 
and  over  a  ^ass  to  the  head-waters  of  Pocupine.  This 
may  be  descended  to  Fort  Yukon,  or  one  may  portage 
over  rough  mountains  to  the  head  of  the  Tatonduc  River 
and  descend  almost  straight  to  Forty-Mile. 

It  is  quite  likely  that  some  persons  will  take  this  route 
from  Canada  to  the  Yukon  gold  fields  next  year ;  but  at 
present  it  is  too  long,  hazardous,  and  unknown  to  be 
recommended  to  any  one. 

The  foregoing  include  all  the  overland  routes  which 
are  from  present  information  at  all  feasible. 

The  sea  route  from  either  Seattle  or  San  Francisco  is 
only  open  for  three  months  of  the  year  at  the  most.  It 
is  by  far  the  most  attractive  route  from  a  standpoint  of 
comfort.  From  Seattle  to  St.  Michael  is  2,500  miles,  and 
from  St.  Michael  to  Dawson  is  2,200  more.  Using  San 
Francisco  as  the  port  of  departure,  the  trip  is  lengthened 
by  400  miles.  The  cost  of  passage  from  Seattle  to  St. 
Michael,  provisions  included,  is  $165. 

The  first  boat  up  the  Yukon  in  the  spring  reaches 
Circle  City  toward  the  end  of  June,  and  the  last  one 
leaves  there  early  in  September  on  the  return  trip  to 
St.  Michael's  Island.  Between  the  coming  of  these 
boats  there  is  no  communication  with  the  outside  world 
except  by  dog  sledges  over  the  mountains.  The  trip  of 
1,300  miles  to  St.  Michael's  Island  can  be  made  by  dog 
sledge  over  the  frozen  river,  but  at  that  point  the  voy- 
ager would  be  but  little  better  off  than  he  was  at  Circle 
City  or  Klondike,  as  the  ocean  steamers  only  run  in 


ill 


VARIOUS  ROUTES. 


75 


connection  with  the  Yukon  River  boats.  The  last 
steamer  for  this  season  left  Seattle  for  St.  Michael's 
Island  early  in  August,  and,  if  there  is  no  unforeseen 
delay,  ics  passengers  will  be  landed  in  Dawson  City,  the 
tented  metropolis  of  the  gold  fields,  about  Septem- 
ber 1st 

A  number  of  schemes  for  penetrating  the  territory 
traversed  by  the  Upper  Yukon  by  railroads  have  been 
under  way  for  some  time,  and  the  recent  heavy  travel 
in  that  direction  has  ca'ised  work  on  them  to  be  pushed 
in  earnest.  What  is  generally  considered  the  most 
feasible  of  these  routes  calls  for  a  mixed  rail-and-water 
route  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  on  Lake  Superior,  to  the 
Yukon  River.  In  an  air  line  the  distance  from  the  "  Soo  ** 
to  Dawson  City  is  about  2,100  miles,  but  an  air  line  is 
out  of  the  question,  owing  to  the  rugged  country  lying 
between.  The  projected  route,  wh'  h  is  proposed  in 
sober  earnest  by  men  of  prominence  and  means,  who 
have  been  figuring  upon  the  matter  for  the  last  year, 
calls  for  the  building  of  about  625  miles  of  railway 
and  the  utilizing  of  practically  all  of  the  great  navigable 
streams  of  the  western  half  of  British  Columbia,  as  well 
as  of  Hudson's  Bay. 

The  first  and  longest  stretch  of  railway  would  be  be- 
tween Sault  Ste.  Marie  and  Hudson's  Bay,  touching  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Moose  River,  a  distance  of  about  400 
miles.  By  building  the  first  section  from  Missanabie,  on 
the  Canadian  Pacific  Railway,  Hudson's  Bay  would  be 
reached  by  250  miles  of  rail.  But  the  intention  is  to 
build  the  line  to  the  Sault  ultimately,  independent  of  the 


76 


NAVIGATION. 


Canadian  Pacific,  although  that  road  may  be  utilized  at 
first  from  Missanabie  to  Lake  Superior.  From  the  end 
of  the  first  rail  line,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Moose  River, 
there  is  a  stretch  of  1,300  miles  of  salt  water,  on  the 
bay  and  on  Ch'jsterfield  Inlet,  to  the  head  of  navigable 
water.  The  season  of  navigation  on  Hudson's  Bay 
probably  would  be  nearly  as  long  as  on  Lake  Superior, 
the  salt  water  counterbalancing  the  more  severe 
climate. 

From  Chesterfield  Inlet,  175  miles  will  reach  Great 
Slave  Lake,  an  enormous  fresh-water  sea,  second  only 
to  the  great  lakes  of  this  ^ountry  in  size.  The  outlet  of 
Great  Slave  Lake  is  the  Mackenzie  River,  one  of  the 
largest  streams  on  the  continent,  and  freely  navigable 
without  rapids  or  falls  to  the  Arctic  Ocean,  a  distance 
of  1,400  miles.  The  delta  of  the  Mackenzie  is  only  fifty 
miles  from  the  Porcupine  River,  one  of  the  principal 
affluents  of  the  Yukon,  which  is  navigable  by  steamers 
of  large  draft  from  the  point  where  it  is  proposed  to 
reach  it  with  the  fifty-mile  strip  of  rail  from  the  Mac- 
kenzie. The  distance  from  the  point  where  the  rails 
would  connect  the  Mackenzie  and  Porcupine  Rivers  to 
the  mouth  of  the  Porcupine  at  its  junction  with  the 
Yukon  is  about  400  miles,  the  Porcupine  emptying  into 
the  Yukon  a  short  distance  from  Circle  City.  Dawson 
City,  the  main  settlement  of  the  Klondike  region,  is 
about  300  miles  up  the  Yukon. 

The  total  distance  of  the  proposed  route  from  Sault 
Ste.  Marie,  the  outlet  of  Lake  Superior,  to  Dawson  City 
would  be  about  4,025  miles,  of  which  there  would  be  ap- 


DISTANCE  COMPARED. 


77 


proximately  625  miles  of  rail  and  3,400  miles  of  wa^.er 
transportation.  This  distance  compares  most  favorably 
with  the  shortest  route  at  present  known  from  the  great 
lakes,  which  is  overland  to  Seattle  or  Vancouver,  thence 
by  water  to  Juneau,  over  the  mountains  to  Lake  Ben- 
nett and  thence  down  the  Yukon  River  on  a  raft  or  boat. 

The  three  different  sections  of  railroad  would  not  be 
especially  difficult  to  build,  with  the  exception  of  the 
drawbacks  suffered  from  short  seasons.  It  would  re- 
quire very  much  less  to  the  mile  to  build  than  the  Cana- 
dian Pacific  has  cost,  partly  because  of  the  cheaper 
methods  of  construction,  but  mainly  because  the  to- 
pography of  the  country  through  wh^ch  the  rails  are  to 
be  laid  presents  fewer  difficulties  to  the  road-builder. 
The  250-miie  section  from  Missanabie  to  St.  James  Bay, 
the  lower  part  of  Hudson's  Bay,  would  lie  along  the 
valley  of  the  Moose  River  for  the  entire  distance  of  250 
miles,  and  having  rail  connection  at  its  southern  end,  it 
could  be  built  as  cheaply  as  any  other  of  the  roads 
of  northern  Ontario.  The  hills  on  the  route  of  the 
175-mile  section,  between  Chesterfield  Inlet  and  Great 
Slave  Lake  are  of  only  moderate  elevation.  The  fifty- 
mile  strip  to  connect  the  Mackenzie  and  Porcupine 
Rivers  would  pass  through  an  almost  level  country,  the 
extreme  northern  spurs  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  fading 
away  100  miles  to  the  southward. 

The  intense  cold  of  Alaska  and  of  Arctic  and  sub- 
arctic British  North  America  would  not  prove  the  bar  to 
the  building  of  railways  and  permanent  occupation  and 
development  of  the  country  which  might  be  thought  by 


78 


TEMPERATURE. 


!l 


residents  of  more  favored  climes.  The  temperature  at 
Fort  William,  the  principal  Lake  Superior  port  of  the 
Canadian  Pacific,  and  at  the  northern  angle  of  the  lake, 
often  exceeds  50  degrees  below  zero,  and  it  has  reached 
60,  while  eighteen  months  ago,  in  Minnesota,  a  short 
distance  west  of  Duluth,  the  temperature  dropped  to  67 
below  zero.  The  coldest  weather  reported  from  Alaska 
or  the  Northwest  Territory  is  but  72. 

It  is  also  proposed  to  run  a  railroad  from  Telegraph 
Creek  at  the  head  of  the  Stickine  River,  on  the  coast  of 
British  Columbia,  to  Lake  Teslin.  It  is  claimed  that  the 
building  of  this  road  would  be  comparatively  easy,  and 
much  the  shortest  rail  route  to  the  navigable  inland 
waters.  It  runs  through  a  mineral  country  which 
promises  great  future  development  of  quartz  mining. 
The  Treadwell  mine  on  Douglass  Island  is  near  its 
western  end,  and  in  the  east  it  taps  the  western  slope  of 
the  Cassiars.  Like  conditions  will  doubtless  be  found 
to  prevail  through  almost  its  entire  length,  and  the 
development  of  quartz  iedges  along  its  route  will  give 
it  regular  and  continuous  traffic  in  addition  to  supplying 
the  through  trade  on  the  Yukon,  all  of  whose  gold- 
bearing  tributaries  are  in  easy  reach. 

To  the  Yukon  Mining,  Trading  &  Transportation 
Company,  proposing  this  road,  t!ie  Parliament  of  British 
Columbia  at  its  las*,  session  gave  full  power  to  build  its 
line  and  a  land  grant  of  750,000  acres,  wnich  grants 
were  confirmed  by  the  Dominion  Parliament  at  Ottawa 
last  May,  with  additional  privileges  and  concessions. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


11 


THE    OUTFIT    OF    AN    ARGONAUT. 

The  qualifications  of  a  successful  miDer — One  temptation  of  the  gold-digger — Pro* 
visions  for  the  journey  to  Dawsoa  City — Camping  outfit  and  cooking  utensils — 
The  tool  chest  of  a  Lake  Lindeman  boat-builder — What  to  wear  in  low  temper- 
atures— Supplies  for  a  year's  stay — Turnips  by  the  pound — The  Dawson  City 
storekeeper's  scale  of  prices — Reasons  for  lower  prices — The  custom  houses  at 
Dyea  and  LaKe  Bennett — A  few  pointers  for  prospective  Alaskans. 

TO  be  well  prepared  is  half  the  battle  won.  This  is 
the  substance  of  an  old  adage  which  is  peculiarly 
adapted  to  the  case  of  one  starting  out  to  the  Alaskan 
gold  fields  in  the  search  of  wealth,  or  even  of  a  simple 
livelihood.  The  conditions  of  life  in  any  newly-discov- 
ered mining  country  are  such  as  to  place  a  man  on  his 
metde,  to  bring  out  everything  that  is  in  him,  to  make 
him  resourceful  and  self-reliant.  But  these  things  being 
equal,  it  is  the  one  who  has  just  the  right  equipment 
who  will  have  the  advantage  when  the  going  is  hard 
and  to  all  appearances  pretty  even. 

To  be  sober,  strong,  and  healthy  is  the  first  requisite 
for  any  one  who  wants  to  battle  successfully  for  a  year 
or  two  in  the  frozen  lands  of  the  far  North.  A  physique 
hardy  enough  to  withstand  the  most  rigorous  climate  is 
an  absolute  necessity.  With  a  temperature  varying 
from  almost  one  hundred  decrrees  above  zero  in  mid- 
summer  to  fifty,  sixty,  and  even  sevtnty  below  that  point 
in  winter,  with  weeks  of  foggy,  damp,  thawing  weather, 

79 


'   ;  SI 


I'  ] 


80 


GOOD  JUDGMENT  REQUISITE. 


and  with  winds  that  rage  at  times  with  the  violence  of 
hunicanes,  the  man  with  a  weak  constitution  is  bound 
to  suffer  untold  hardship.  No  one  with  weak  lungs  or 
subject  to  rheumatism  ought  to  think  of  wintering  along 
the  Yukon.  In  short,  making  the  venture  means,  ac- 
cording to  one  who  has  tried  it,  "packing  provisions 
over  pathless  mountains,  towing  a  heavy  boat  against  a 
five  to  an  eight-mile  current,  over  battered  boulders, 
digging  in  the  bottomless  frost,  sleeping  where  night 
overtakes,  fighting  gnats  and  mosquitoes  by  the  mil- 
lions, shooting  seething  cailons  and  rapids  and  enduring 
for  seven  long  months  a  relentless  cold  which  never  rises 
above  zero  and  frequently  falls  to  eighty  degrees  below." 

If  a  man  is  able  to  mee  t  these  conditions  he  is  almost 
sure  of  making  a  good  living  and  takes  chances  with 
the  rest  in  making  a  fortune.  It  is  not  alone  to  the 
physical  side  of  the  question  that  one  should  look. 
Temperament  counts  for  a  great  deal  in  the  miner's  life. 
Men  should  be  of  cheerful,  hopeful  dispositions  and  will- 
ing workers.  Those  of  sullen,  morose  natures,  although 
they  may  be  good  workers,  are  very  apt,  as  soon  as  the 
novelty  of  the  country  wears  off,  to  become  dissatisfied, 
pessimistic,  and  melancholy. 

Good  judgment  is  also  a  prime  requisite.  Once  in 
the  atmosphere  of  the  gold  country  one  hears  constantly 
of  newly-found  placers  which  are  reported  to  be  vastly 
richer  than  anything  yet  discovered.  With  each  such 
report  scores  of  miners  leave  diggings  which  are  vastly 
•uperior  to  those  which  they  propose  to  seek  six,  twenty, 


WILD  STORIES. 


8i 


or  one  hundred  miles  away.  If  one  is  constantly  on  the 
jump  from  claim  to  claim  there  is  evidently  no  time  left 
for  the  only  work  that  counts,  separating  the  gold  from 
its  containing  earths.  One  of  the  returning  miners  on 
the  "  Excelsior  "  said  that  the  hardest  work  he  had  to  do 
in  the  Klondike  region  was  to  keep  pegging  away  at  his 
claim,  which,  by  the  way,  was  a  very  good  one,  and  give 
a  deaf  ear  to  the  stories  of  fabulous  wealth  being  found 
just  beyond  the  nearest  range  of  mountains.  These 
stories  are  often  put  in  circulation  by  people  who  are 
anxious  to  see  certain  claims  forsaken  by  their  owners 
that  they  themselves  may  step  in  and  become  the 
owners. 

As  to  the  outfit,  both  that  part  of  it  which  bears  on  the 
journey  proper  and  those  things  which  are  to  form  the 
basis  of  existence  for  the  stay  in  the  gold  country,  the 
greatest  care  must  be  exercised.  To  meet  with  the 
largest  measure  of  success  and  in  order  to  be  in  a  po- 
sition to  move  and  work  rapidly,  which  amounts  to  the 
same  thing,  one  must  Jtrike  a  happy  medium  between 
taking  too  much  and  leaving  behind  some  of  the  numer- 
ous essentials.  Joseph  Ladue,  who  has  spent  years  in 
this  country  and  who  is  given  credit  for  having  founded 
Dawson  City,  says  in  regard  to  this : 

"  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  take  anything  except  what 

is  necessary.     The  trip  is  a  long,  arduous  one,  and  a 

man  should  not  add  one  pound  of  baggage  to  hie  outfit 

that  can  be  dispensed  with.     I  have  known  men  who 

loaded  themselves  up  with  rifles,   revolvers,  and  shot- 
4 


lis 


,  *'i 


11 


i; 


82 


WINTER  CLOTHING. 


guns.  This  is  entirely  unnecessary.  Revolvers  will  get 
you  into  trouble,  and  there  is  no  use  of  taking  them  with 
you,  as  large  game  of  any  character  is  rarely  found  on 
the  trip.  I  have  prospected  through  this  region  for 
some  years  and  have  only  seen  one  moose.  You  will 
not  see  any  large  game  whatever  on  your  trip  from 
Juneau  to  Dawson  City,  therefore  do  not  take  any  fire- 
arms along." 

In  addition  to  the  great  inconvenience  of  carrying  a 
great  deal  of  luggage  it  is  a  matter  of  continual  expense. 
It  is  said  that  the  Indians  are  disposed  to  gauge  a  man's 
ability  to  pay  by  the  amount  of  baggage  he  takes  with 
him,  and  scale  their  prices  accordingly.  At  15,  20,  or  25 
cents  a  pound  for  packing  over  the  Chilkoot  Pass  it 
makes  considerable  difference  whether  a  man  has  with 
him  a  hundred  weight  or  half  a  ton  of  freight.  Then 
there  are  steamer  charges,  wharfage  fees,  and  often 
portage  expenses  to  be  defrayed,  to  say  nothing  of  cus- 
toms duties.  One  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  of  baggage 
is  all  that  is  allowed  for  a  passenger  on  the  Yukon 
River  boats  and  those  sailing  from  Seattle  and  San  Fran- 
cisco for  Alaskan  ports. 

The  general  practice  as  to  clothing  for  miners  who  re- 
main over  winter  is  to  adopt  the  dress  of  the  natives. 
Water  boots  are  made  of  seal  or  walrus  skins ;  dr\ 
weather,  or  winter  boots,  from  various  skins,  fur 
trimmed.  Trousers  are  made  of  Siberian  fawn  and 
marm^.  skins,  while  the  upper  garment,  combined  with 
a  hood,  called  tarka,  is  made  of  marmot  trimmed  with 


PROVISIONS. 


83 


long  fur,  which  helps  to  protect  the  face  of  the  person 
wearing  it.  Flannels  can  be  worn  under  these,  and  not 
be  any  heavier  than  clothing  worn  in  a  country  with  zero 
weather.  For  bedding,  woolen  blankets  are  used,  com- 
bined with  fur  robes.  If  the  former  are  used  it  is  well 
to  be  provided  with  two  pairs. 

The  best  robes  are  of  wolf  skin,  but  they  cost  jiioo 
apiece.  There  are  cheaper  ones  made  of  bear,  mink, 
and  fox  skins.  A  good,  stout  pair  of  rubber  boots  is 
also  essential.  The  boots  made  by  the  natives  sell  from 
$2  to  $5  a  pair. 

As  to  provisions,  it  is  impossible  to  lay  down  any  defi- 
nite scheme.  The  first  consideration  is  to  have  enough 
to  last  for  the  journey  from  the  coast  to  the  interior. 
Figuring  on  thirty  days  as  the  shortest  time  possible  in 
which  this  trip  can  be  made,  the  supply  ought  to  be  about 
as  follows :  Twenty  pounds  of  flour,  twelve  pounds  of 
bacon,  twelve  pounds  of  beans,  four  pounds  of  butter, 
five  pounds  of  vegetables;  five  pounds  of  dried  fruits, 
four  cans  of  condensed  milk,  five  pounds  of  sugar,  one 
pound  of  tea,  three  pounds  of  coffee,  one  and  one-half 
pounds  of  salt,  five  pounds  of  corn-meal,  a  small  portion 
of  pepper  and  mustard,  and  baking-powder. 

To  one  accustomed  to  camp  life  there  are  many  things 
in  the  way  of  utensils  and  apparatus  generally  that  can 
be  dispensed  with  which,  to  the  man  new  to  such  modes 
of  living,  are,  or  seem  to  he,  absolutely  necessary.  A 
pretty  complete  outfit  includes  matches,  cooking  utensils 
and  dishes,  frying  pan,  water  kettle,  duck  tent,  rubber 


^-0 

•a 


I     ' 


(I.  1' 


84 


GNATS  AND  MOSQUITOES. 


i1 


blanket,  bean  pot,  drinking-cup,  two  plates,  tea-pot, 
knife  and  fork,  large  cooking  pan,  small  cooking  pan.  A 
fine  addition  to  the  culinary  department  will  be  a  good 
assortment  of  fish-hooks,  gill  nets,  and  fishing  tackle. 
These  ought  to  be  graded  through  the  medium  and  small 
sizes.    Alaskan  fish  are  for  the  most  part  gamey. 

Ample  provision  must  be  made  for  the  boat,  raft,  and 
sled  building,  which  is  a  feature  of  every  journey  over- 
land. To  this  end  these  items  will  be  found  not  only 
useful  but  absolutely  necessary:  One  jack-plane,  one 
whip-saw,  one  cross-cut  saw,  one  rip-saw,  one  axe,  one 
hatchet,  one  hunting-knife,  one  two-foot  rule,  six  pounds 
of  assorted  nails,  three  pounds  of  oakum,  five  pounds  of 
pitch,  1 50  feet  of  rope. 

Inasmuch  as  gnats  and  mosquitoes  abound  all  over 
the  Alaskan  interior,  some  means  of  protection  from  their 
assaults  must  be  provided.  Mosquito  netting  is  recom- 
mended, and  it  is  well  to  buy  that  with  the  smallest  mesh 
obtainable.  Snow  spectacles  and  a  simple  medicine  chest 
ought  to  find  a  place  in  every  outfit.  One  man  ought 
never  to  try  the  trip  alone,  and  where  four  or  five  pool 
their  interests  one  tent,  one  stove,  and  one  set  of  tools 
will  suffice  for  the  party. 

After  the  supplies  for  the  trip  to  the  mines  have  been 
decided  upon,  the  more  extensive  task  of  laying  in  pro- 
visions for  the  stay  can  be  taken  up.  A  good,  safe  rule 
is  to  estimate  on  remaining  on  the  Yukon  a  full  year. 
If  one  decides  later  to  prolong  the  time  it  will  be  easier 
to  send  back  or  go  back  to  Juneau  for  further  supplies 


!« 


A  YEAR'S  NECESSITIES. 


85 


than  to  be  burdened  with  them  during  the  first  months 
of  life  in  camp,  and  more  especially  when  making  the 
first  trip  over  the  mountains. 

A  miner  who,  after  spending  long  years  in  the  Col- 
orado camp,  went  to  Alaska  to  tempt  fortune  on  the 
Klondike,  gives  the  following  list  his  indorsement  as 
containing  everything  necessary  for  one  man  for  one 
year:  Flour,  400  lbs. ;  corn-meal,  2-ios,  20  lbs.;  rolled 
oats,  4-9S,  36  lbs. ;  rice,  25  lbs.;  beans,  100  lbs. ;  sugar, 
75  lbs. ;  dried  fruits  (apples,  peaches,  apricots),  75  lbs. ; 
yeast  cakes  (6  in  pkg.),  6  pkgs. ;  candles,  40;  dry  salt 
pork,  25  lbs.;  cvap.  potatoes,  25  lbs.;  evap.  onions,  5 
lbs. ;  butter ;  bacon,  1 50  lbs. ;  dried  beef,  30  lbs. ;  ex- 
tract of  beef  (4  oz.),  J^  doz. ;  baking-powder,  10  lbs.; 
soda,  3  lbs. ;  salt,  20  lbs.;  pepper,  i  lb. ;  mustard,  ^  lb, ; 
ginger;  coffee,  25  lbs.;  tea,  10  lbs.;  condensed  milk,  2 
doz.;  soap  (laundry),  5  lbs.;  soap  (toilet),  5  cakes; 
matches,  can  of  60  pkgs. ;  tobacco  ;  compressed  soup, 
3doz. ;  compressed  soup  vegetables,  10  lbs.;  Jamaica 
ginger  (4  oz.),  2  bottles ;  stove,  i  ;  gold  pan,  i  ;  granite 
buckets,  2 ;  knives  and  forks,  i  each ;  spoons,  3  tea  and 
3  table ;  Quaker  bread-pan,  i  ;  cups,  2  ;  plates  (tin),  3  ; 
whetstone,  i  ;  coffee-pot,  i  ;  picks  and  handles,  i  ;  sleds ; 
hatchet,  i  ;  saws  (whip),  i  ;  saws  (hand),  i  ;  shovel,  i ; 
nails,  20 lbs. ;  files  (assorted),  J^  doz.;  axe  and  handle, 
I ;  draw  knife,  i  ;  plane,  i  ;  brace  and  bitt,  1  ;  chisels 
(assorted),  3  ;  butcher  knife,  i ;  compass,  i  ;  revolver, 
I ;  evap.  vinegar,  i  qt. ;  rope  (yi  inch),  icx)  ft.;  medi- 
cine case;  pitch;  oakum;  fry  pan,  i. 


*::; 


86 


SCALE  OF  PRICES. 


'i  i 


m 

m 


As  a  general  rule  miners  find  it  to  best  advantage  to 
buy  the  larger  part  of  their  outfits  in  Juneau  rather 
than  in  the  United  States  or  on  the  Yukon.  Buying  in 
the  United  States  one  has  to  pay  the  freight  to  Juneau 
or  Skaguay,  and  perhaps  wharfage  at  those  points.  The 
prices  prevailing  in  Juneau  for  the  necessary  commodi- 
ties are  not  prohibitory  at  all.  But  the  same  cannot  be 
said  of  the  tariff  in  vogue  among  the  storekeepers  of 
Dawson  City»  as  witness  the  following  scale  of  prices : 
Flour,  per  loo  lbs.,  $12  ;  moose  ham,  per  lb.,  $1 ;  cari- 
bou meat,  per  lb.,  65  cts.;  beans,  per  lb.,  10  cts. ;  rice, 
per  lb.,  25  cts. ;  sugar,  per  lb.,  25  cts. ;  bacon,  per  lb.,  40 
cts. ;  butter,  per  roll,  $1.50;  eggs,  per  doz.,  $1.50;  better 
eggs,  per  doz.,  fi ;  salmon,  each,  $1  to  $1.50 ;  potatoes, 
per  lb.,  25  cts. ;  turnips,  per  lb.,  15  cts. ;  tea,  per  lb.,  $1 : 
coffee,  per  lb.,  50  cts. ;  dried  fruits,  per  lb.,  35  cts. ; 
canned  fruits,  50  cts. ;  canned  meats,  75  cts. ;  lemons, 
each,  20  cts. ;  oranges,  each,  50  cts. ;  tobacco,  per  lb., 
$1.50;  liquors,  per  drink,  50  cts. ;  shovels,  {^2.50;  picks, 
J^5  ;  coal  oil,  per  gallon,  $1  ;  overalls,  $1.50;  underwear, 
per  suit,  $$  to  $7.50;  shoes,  $5  ;  rubber  boots,  JJio  to 
^15  ;  lumber,  per  1,000  feet,  $150. 

In  some  of  the  camps  further  back  from  the  river  even 
higher  prices  prevail.  Some  idea  of  them  can  be  gained 
from  the  following: — Bacon,  per  lb.,  75  cts.;  coffee,  per 
lb.,$i ;  sugar,  per  lb.,  50  cts. ;  eggs,  per  doz.,  $2 ;  con- 
densed milk,  per  can,  $1 ;  picks,  each,  $1$;  shovels, 
each,  $15. 

Of  course,  a  few  months  will  make  a  great  difference 


CLOTHING  OUTFIT. 


87 


In  these  matters.  Already  the  steamboat  companies 
doing  business  on  the  Yukon  are  making  plans  to  send 
thousands  of  tons  of  food  supplies  and  clothing  to  the 
gold  fields  when  the  ice  breaks  up  next  summer.  Their 
efforts  will  be  largely  supplemented  by  private  enter- 
prises of  one  kind  and  another,  so  that  it  is  confidently 
expected  that  the  exorbitant  rates  which  now  obtain  on 
the  Klondike  will  be  materially  reduced  next  summer. 

A  good  clothing  outfit  for  a  year's  stay  is  this:— 
Two  pairs  heaviest  wool  socks,  one  pair  Canadian  lara- 
gans  or  shoe  packs,  one  pair  German  socks,  two  pairs 
heaviest  woolen  blankets,  one  oil  blanket  or  canvas,  one 
mackinaw  suit,  two  heavy  flannel  shirts,  two  pairs  heavy 
overalls,  two  suits  heavy  woolen  underwear,  one  pair 
rubber  boots  (crack  proof  preferable),  one  pair  snow- 
shoes,  heavy  cap,  fleece-lined  mittens. 

To  the  prosperous  mechanic  or  business  man  this  list 
may  look  a  little  scant  as  to  some  of  its  numbers.  For  the 
enlightenment  of  those  who  would  be  thus  critical  be  it 
said  that  it  is  the  custom  among  miners  to  resort  to  fre- 
quent washings  and  mendings  rather  than  to  carry  along 
a  great  variety  and  large  number  of  the  various  articles 
of  apparel. 

The  situation  in  Alaska  as  regards  the  collection  of 
customs  duties  is,  to  say  the  least,  a  little  complicated 
at  the  present  moment.  Acting  under  orders  from 
Secretary  Gage,  the  newly-appointed  collector  for  the 
territory,  Mr.  Ivey,  of  Oregon,  has  established  a  sub- 
port  of  entry  at  Dyea.     Of  course,  after  the  machinery 


I 


I' 


88 


TREATY  PROVISIONS. 


of  this  new  custom  house  has  become  sufficiently  clock- 
like in  its  workings,  goods  from  the  United  States  des- 
tined for  the  Klondike,  will  be  inspected,  tagged,  and  sent 
in  bond  over  the  passes  to  the  Canadian  custom  house 
to  be  established  on  Lake  Bennett  in  just  the  same  way 
as  it  is  done  with  baggage  belonging  to  passengers  on 
Michigan  Central  trains  going  from  Buffalo  to  Chicago. 
Twelve  Canadian  customs  officials  have  started  for  the 
interior  where  they  will  set  up  an  office  on  the  portage 
between  Lakes  Bennett  and  Tagish,  a  point  by  which  all 
Yukon  or  Klondike  travelers  must  pass  if  they  start 
from  Dyea  or  Skaguay.  The  rate  of  duty  will  average 
about  JJ30  on  the  average  outfit  of  a  Yukoner.  The 
officers  are  well  armed,  and  will  have  the  assistance  of 
the  mounted  police  to  enforce  the  collection  of  duties. 
Further  down  the  river  will  be  stationed  guards  to  in- 
tercept any  one  who  might  elude  the  vigilance  of  the 
officers.  ' 

American  miners  who  have  investigated  the  ques- 
tion, assert  that  the  treaty  between  Russia  and  Great 
Britain  provided  that  the  Yukon,  Porcupine,  and  Skeena 
Rivers  should  be  free  for  commercial  purposes  and  ex- 
empted from  the  imposition  of  customs  duties.  The 
Canadians  evade  the  point  at  issue  by  claiming  that 
prospectors  crossing  the  mountain  ranges  to  the  lakes 
or  headwaters  of  the  Yukon  do  not  go  into  the  terri- 
tory ma  any  of  the  rivers  mentioned,  but  that  they  cross 
Canadian  territory,  and  before  they  can  reach  the  Yukon 
the  duty  is  exacted. 


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CACHE  OF  PROVISIONS. 


91 


The  Canadian  officers  are  taking  with  them  a  full 
year's  supplies,  and  with  the  assistance  of  the  mounted 
police  propose  to  maintain  an  official  monthly  mail 
service,  for  official  purposes  only,  between  the  Klondike 
and  Ottawa. 

In  conclusion,  here  are  a  few  pointers  dictated  by  ex- 
perience for  the  benefit  of  the  Klondiker.  For  the  most 
part  their  observance  will  involve  but  little  trouble,  and, 
on  the  other  hand,  will  add  vastly  to  one's  comfort  while 
in  the  frozen  lands : 

Don't  waste  a  single  ounce  of  anything,  even  if  you 
don't  like  it.  Put  it  away  and  it  will  come  handy  when 
you  will  like  it. 

If  it  is  ever  necessary  to  cache  a  load  of  provisions, 
put  all  articles  next  to  the  ground  which  will  be  most 
affected  by  heat,  providing  at  the  same  time  that  damp- 
ness will  not  affect  their  food  properties  to  any  great 
extent.  After  piling  your  stuff,  carefully  heap  heavy 
rocks  over  it.  Take  your  compass  bearings,  and 
also  note  in  your  pocket  some  landmarks  near  by,  and 
also  the  direction  in  which  they  lie  from  your  cache — 
i,  e.t  make  your  cache,  if  possible,  come  between  ex- 
actly north  and  south  of  two  given  prominent  marks.  In 
this  way,  even  though  covered  by  snow,  you  can  locate 
your  "existence."  Don't  forget  that  this  may  be  the 
proper  name  for  it  at  some  future  time. 

Shoot  a  dog,  if  you  have  to,  behind  the  base  of  the 
skull ;  a  horse  between  the  ears,  ranging  downward. 
Press  the  trigger  of  your  rifle.     Don't  pull  it.     Don't 


92 


IMPORTANT  POINTS. 


[  I 


catch  hold  of  the  b-^rrel  when  thirty  degrees  below  zero 
is  registered.  Watch  out  against  getting  snow  in  your 
barrel.  If  you  do,  don't  shoot  it  out  or  the  gun  may 
and  probably  will  burst. 

A  little  dry  grass  or  hay  in  the  inside  of  your  mittens, 
next  your  hands,  will  help  retain  the  heat,  especially 
when  they  get  damp  from  the  moisture  of  your  hands. 
After  taking  off  your  mittens,  remove  the  hay  ond  dry 
it.     Failing  that,  throw  it  away. 

If  by  any  chance  you  are  traveling  across  a  plain  (no 
trail)  and  a  fog  comes  up,  or  a  blinding  snowstorm, 
either  of  which  will  prevent  you  from  taking  your  bear- 
ings, camp,  and  don't  move,  no  matter  what  any  one  may 
urge,  until  the  weather  becomes  clear  again. 

Keep  all  your  draw-strings  on  clothing  in  good 
repair.  Don't  forget  to  use  your  goggles  when  the  sun 
is  bright  on  snow,  A  fellow  is  often  tempted  to  leave 
them  off.     Don't  you  do  it. 

Travel  as  much  on  clear  ice  toward  your  goal  as  pos- 
sible in  the  spring.  Don't  try  to  pull  sledges  over  snow, 
especially  when  it  is  soft  or  crusty. 

If  you  build  a  sledge  for  extreme  cold  don't  use  steel 
runners.  Make  wooden  ones,  and  freeze  water  on  them 
before  starting  out.  Repeat  the  process  if  the  sled 
begins  to  drag  and  screech. 

In  building  a  sledge  use  lashing  entirely.  Bolts  and 
screws  rack  a  sledge  to  pieces  in  rough  going,  while 
lashing  will  "give," 

Take  plenty  of  tow  for  packing  possible  cracks  in  your 


POINTS  CONTINUED. 


93 


boat,  also  two  pounds  of  good  putty,  some  canvas,  and, 
if  possible,  a  small  can  of  tar  or  white  lead. 

Establish  camp  rules,  especially  regarding  the  food. 
Allot  rations,  less  while  idle  than  when  at  work,  and 
also  varying  with  the  seasons,  a  man  requiring  less  food, 
or  at  any  rate  less  of  certain  kinds  in  warm  than  in  cold 
weather. 

Keep  your  furs  in  good  repair.  One  little  slit  may 
cause  you  untold  agony  during  a  march  in  a  heavy  storm. 
You  cannot  tell  when  such  a  storm  will  overtake  you. 

No  man  can  continuously  drag  more  than  his  own 
weight.    Remember  th  s  is  a  fact. 

Be  sure  during  the  winter  to  watch  your  foot-gear  care- 
fully. Change  wet  stockings  before  they  freeze,  or  you 
may  lose  a  toe  or  foot. 

Keep  the  hood  of  your  kooletah  back  from  your  head 
if  not  too  cold,  and  allow  the  moisture  from  your  body 
to  escape  that  way. 

If  your  furs  get  wet  dry  them  in  a  medium  tempera- 
ture.    Don't  hold  them  near  a  fire. 

When  your  nose  is  bitterly  cold  stuff  both  nostrils  with 
fur,  cotton,  wool,  or  anything  else  soft  enough.  The 
pain  will  cease. 

Don't  try  to  carry  more  than  forty  pounds  of  stuff 
over  a  stiff  climb,  at  least  the  first  day. 

In  cases  of  extreme  cold  at  toes  and  heel,  wrap  a  piece 
of  fur  over  each  extremity. 

Keep  your  sleeping-bag  clean.  If  it  becomes  inhab- 
ited with  vermin  freeze  the  inhabitants  out. 


t 


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ip 


' 


I 


94 


POINTS  CONCLUDED. 


Remember  success  follows  economy  and  persistency 
on  an  expedition  like  yours. 

White  snow  over  a  crevasse,  if  hard,  is  safe ;  yellow 
or  dirty  color,  never. 

Don't  eat  snow  or  ice.     Go  thirsty  until  yc  i  can  melt  it. 

Shoot  a  deer  behind  the  left  shoulder  or  in  the  head. 

Choose  your  bunk  as  far  from  tent  door  as  possible. 

Keep  a  fire  hole  open  near  your  camp. 

The  man  who  knows  little  now  will  come  back  know- 
ing more  than  he  who  knew  it  all  before  starting,  - 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE    MINING    CAMPS    OF   THE   UPPER   YUKON  :    THEIR    LIFE 

AND   LAWS. 

Phases  of  Human  Existence  in  the  Ice-Bound  Towns — Circle  City  as  a 
Base  of  Supplies  and  the  Metropolis  of  the  Yukon  Country — Fort 
Cudahy  arid  the  Fairious  Forty-Mile  Post — Do^s  by  the  Hundred — 
Homes  Without  the  Vanities  of  Civilized  Regions — Gambling  with 
Big  Stakes — Liquor  Traffic  and  Its  Evils— The  Boom  at  Dawson 
City— Some  Strange  Things  About  the  Mail  Service — A  Small  For- 
•tune  Spent  in  Delivering  Each  Mail  Bag — Bottles  of  Gold  the  Legal 
Tender — The  Canadian  Mounted  Police. 

NOWHERE  else  on  earth  will  the  student  of  hu^nan 
nature  find  more  to  interest  him  than  in  the 
mining  camps  of  the  frontier.  In  no  other  spot  will  he 
find  the  conditions  which  surround  the  existence  of  man 
so  strangely  varied.  The  sudden  gathering  of  all 
classes,  races  and  ages,  widely  separated  in  birth  and 
breeding,  character  and  customs  and  tongue,  confronted 
by  the  greatest  hardships,  surrounded  by  the  extremes 
of  human  joy  and  human  sorrow,  brings  about  a  situa- 
tion that  forms  a  basis  for  many  startling  chapters  in  the 
book  of  life. 

The  ice-bound  camps  of  the  great  Yukon  have  not 
been  very  different  in  history  from  those  which  have  ex- 
isted elsewhere  in  other  times,  but  some  of  the  phases 
of  life  familiar  in  the  outposts  of  civilization,  where  the 
greed  for  gold  has  been  the  great  factor  of  the  day,  have 
been  accentuated  by  the  isolation  and  the  peculiar  hard- 
ships which  the  men  who  lived  there  encountered.  There 
has  been  a  notably  small  amount  of  the  more  important 

9S 


Wr 


f 


rd 


96 


tAWIyESSNSSS. 


forms  of  vice.  The  people  seem  less  indifferent  to  the 
rights  of  their  neighbors,  less  careless  about  the  sanctity 
of  human  life  than  in  other  mining  camps.  This  may  be 
because  the  inhabitants  of  the  ice  bound  camps  feel  that 
the  great  distance  of  the  places  from  outside  help,  makes 
It  necessary  that  they  should,  by  simple  laws  of  their  own, 
keep  in  check  the  dangerous  tendencies  of  such  com- 
munities, or  it  may  be  because  the  red  record  of  other 
mining  towns  has  taught  humanity  a  lesson  that  is  not 
to  be  soon  forgotten.  Lawlessness  there  is,  and  probably 
always  will  be  where  men  are  gathered  under  such  cir- 
cumstances, but  the  verdict  of  the  best  authorities  seems 
to  be  that  Dawson  City  is  morally  a  better  place  in  1897 
than  Leadville  was  in  1879,  or  Cripple  Creek  was  in  1895 
and  1 896.  In  the  scramble  for  treasure,  the  sordid  selfish- 
ness of  humanity  has  not  covered  up  the  tenderness  and 
sympathy  and  generosity  that  is  in  the  hearts  of 
nearly  all  men,  and  there  are  many  cases  in  the  annals 
of  the  Yukon  country  which  go  to  show  that  the  sunny 
side  of  life  shines  quite  as  brightly  sometimes  in  the  arc- 
tic regions  of  the  United  States  as  it  does  in  the  metrop- 
olis of  the  nation. 

Circle  City  was  up  to  the  time  of  the  Klondike  dis- 
covery the  most  important  town  of  the  Yukon  country. 
It  was  a  base  of  supplies  for  hundreds  of  prospectors, 
and  in  its  palmiest  days  was  a  lively  town.  Until  last 
winter  the  miners  spent  most  of  their  time  in  the  town, 
as  they  had  not  learned  the  trick  of  working  the  frozen 
ground.  This  made  different  forms  of  amusement  popu- 
lar, and  the  town  boasted  in  addition  to  its  gaming  and 


.,,,'')'■• 


CIRCI^E  CITY. 


97 


small  dance  halls,  two  variety  theatres.  Circle  City 
stands  ou  a  level  plain  near  the  most  northern  bend  of 
the  Yukon  River.  It  obtains  its  name  from  its  proxim- 
ity to  the  Arctic  Circle.  In  the  back-ground  is  the  low 
range  of  hills,  across  which  runs  the  now  well-known 
portage  of  six  miles  to  Birch  Creek. 

Circle  City  is  a  log  town.  Four  hundred  buildings 
constructed  of  roughly  hewed  logs  line  the  streets.  The 
style  of  architecture  is  unvaried.  Whether  the  building 
is  large  or  small  it  is  low  and  square  with  wide  project- 
ing eaves  and  a  roof  covered  with  dirt.  The  cracks  be- 
tween the  logs  are  chinked  with  mud,  moss,  paper  and 
old  clothes.  The  smaller  cabins  can  be  built  by  a  couple 
of  men  in  a  few  days,  and  when  completed,  they  rent  for 
$15  or  Ji20  a  month.  The  lots  on  which  they  are  built 
can  be  bought  for  $2.50  from  the  town  clerk,  and  the 
house  and  ground  together  bring  from  $300  to  $500  ac- 
cording to  location.  The  building  logs  are  rafted  down 
the  river  froii*  some  wooded  islands  twenty  miles  above. 
Some  simple  methods  of  sawing  have  now  been  adopted, 
and  by  paying  a  good  price,  crude  boards  can  be  ob- 
tained. 

It  was  once  said  that  there  were  more  dogs  in  Circle 
City  to  each  inhabitant  than  in  any  other  town  in  the 
world.  There  were  so  many  that  no  attempt  was  made 
to  feed  them  all,  and  as  a  result,  in  their  foraging  for 
food,  they  became  a  nuisance.  So  ravenous  were  many 
of  them  that  even  miners*  boots,  brushes  and  other  valu- 
able articles  were  torn  in  pieces  and  devoured  by  them. 
Every  available  dog  has  been  hurried  off  to  the  Klondike 


V 


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id 

*  '-a 


^i: 


i 


IE 


mmmmrmu  mijili  ^ . 


98 


BSKIMO  DOOa 


as  a  beast  of  burden,  and  no  doubt,  more  than  one  of 
them  will  have  fallen  a  prey  to  the  appetite  of  man  before 
they  see  Circle  City  again 

Robert  Krook,  the  Swedish  Klondike  miner,  says 
that  Eskimo  dogs  will  draw  200  pounds  each  on  a  sled, 
so  that  six  dogs  will  draw  a  year's  supplies  for  one  man. 
He,  however,  puts  in  the  proviso  that  the  sleds  should 
not  have  iron  runners,  because  the  snow  sticks  to  the 
iron  and  increases  the  friction  so  much  that  the  dogs 
cannot  haul  more  than  100  pounds  apiece.  With  brass 
runners  this  drawback  is  obviated.  Last  winter  Eskimo 
dogs  cost  from  $y$  to  $200  apiece,  and  he  does  not  think 
the  price  will  increase  materially,  because  when  the  de- 
mand is  known  the  supply  from  other  parts  of  Alaska 
will  be  plentiful  at  Dyea  and  other  points  along  the  Yu- 
kon. Sometimes  the  feet  of  the  dogs  get  sore  and  then 
the  Indians  fit  mocassins  on  them ;  as  soon,  however,  as 
the  tenderness  is  gone  from  their  feet,  the  dogs  will  bite 
and  tear  the  mocassins  off.  In  speaking  of  the  dogs,  he 
said  that  they  need  no  lines  to  guide  them  and  are 
very  intelligent,  learning  readily  to  obey  a  command  to 
turn  in  any  direction  or  to  stop.  They  have  to  be 
watched  closely,  as  they  will  attack  and  devour  stores 
left  in  their  way,  especially  bacon,  which  must  be  hung 
up  out  of  their  reach.  At  night,  when  camp  is  pitched, 
the  moment  a  blanket  is  thrown  upon  the  ground  they 
will  run  into  it  and  curl  up,  and  neither  cuffs  nor  kicks 
suffice  to  budge  them.  They  lie  as  close  up  to  the 
men  who  own  them  as  possible,  and  the  miner  cannot 
wrap  himself  up  so  close  that  they  won't  get  under  his 


_l  "_W 


QtSER  tBAMS. 


99 


blanket  with  him.    They  are  human,  too,  in  their  disin- 
clination to  get  out  in  the  morning. 

Where  sleds  cannot  be  used,  the  dogs  will  carry  fifty 
pounds  apiece  in  saddlebags,  slung  across  their  backs 
in  pannier  fashion.  Nature  has  fitted  these  dogs  for 
their  work,  and  mastiffs  and  St.  Bernards  are  not  as 
serviceable.  The  two  lat.er  breeds  cannot  stand  the 
intense  cold  so  well,  and  though  at  first  they  will  draw 
the  sleds  cheerfully,  their  feet  cannot  resist  the  strain, 
and  begin  to  bleed  so  freely  that  the  dogs  are  useless. 
The  pads  under  the  feet  of  the  Eskimo  dogs  are  of 
tougher  skin.  • " 

Circle  City  came  into  existence  when  some  half- 
breed  Indians  discovered  gold  in  considerable  quantities 
on  Birch  Creek,  several  years  ago.  Supplies  from 
down  the  Yukon  River  began  early  to  pass  through 
the  town  and  over  the  portage  to  Birch  Creek. 
The  cost  of  transportation  is  JJ45  for  100  pounds  and 
upwards,  which  high  rate  is  felt  severely  by  the  miners. 
Once  on  Birch  Creek  the  supplies  are  sent  up  the  stream 
by  boats, which  are  propelled  by  the  slow  poling  process. 
One  of  the  queer  teams,  until  recently,  engaged  in  the 
supply  traffic  to  the  creek,  was  composed  of  a  moose, 
which  had  been  caught  when  a  calf  and  trained,  and  a 
mule.  The  moose,  which  was  the  pride  of  its  owner,  a 
Circle  City  merchant,  was  shot  one  day  by  a  tenderfoot, 
who  had  heard  many  stories  of  Alaska  game,  and 
believed  the  animal  had  wandered  into  the  town  in 
search  of  food. 

The  theatres  in  Circle  City  are  not  supplied  with  th^ 


;:  111 


i!:4f 


r> 


100 


THEATRICAI^. 


best  talent  in  the  land,  but  there  is  frequently  a  "show" 
at  one  or  the  other,  and  if  the  scenery  and  surroundings 
are  not  of  the  most  pretentious,  the  result  is  not  seen  in 
a  small  audience.  One  of  the  theatrical  troops  which 
visited  Circle  City  last  winter  was  composed  of  six 
young  women  and  five  men,  who  walked  something  like 
500  miles  in  the  course  of  their  journey  for  the  purpose 
of  amusing  the  miners.  They  were  all  dressed  in 
Mackinaw  suits  with  trousers. 

The  present  conception  of  the  popular  taste  in 
Alaska  seems  to  be  that  the  public  wants  a  strong  show, 
and  in  the  attempt  to  meet  the  demand  the  managers 
cannot  find  anything  up  to  the  standard  in  books  and 
are  driven  to  the  point  of  inventing  new  features.  **  The 
man  from  Douglas  Island  "  was  an  original  drama  that 
was  offered  to  the  people  of  Juneau.  The  title  had 
local  significance,  as  Douglas  Island  is  just  across  the 
channel  from  the  town.  It  was  a  very  successful  play. 
The  hero  was  a  barkeeper  named  Charlie,  and  the  hero- 
ine, to  use  the  hero's  own  words,  was  a  "  perfect  lady," 
who  had  a  desire  to  see  something  of  the  town  with  a 
fancy,  rather  unusual  in  a  person  of  that  description,  for 
incidentally  "hitting  the  pipe."  There  was  a  bootblack, 
a  Chinaman,  an  Irish  policeman,  a  dude  and  a  number 
of  sports  and  "ladies  "  in  the  piece.  After  the  requisite 
amount  of  adversity  and  bad  luck  had  been  ground  out, 
the  hero,  with  the  help  of  the  bootblack,  triumphed  over 
the  dude,  got  a  "pull"  with  the  policeman,  married  the 
heroine  and  otherwise  attained  brilliant  success  as  the 
proprietor  of  the  "finest  joint  in  the  town,"  to  quote  his 
own  language  again. 


DISTRIBUTINO  UAH. 


101 


Up  to  within  the  last  few  months  it  was  the  custom  in 
Circle  City  for  the  postmaster,  upon  the  arrival  of  the 
mail,  to  stand  upon  a  shoe-box  before  the  assembled 
populace  and  read  off  the  address  on  each  letter.  Each 
fortunate  man  would  step  up  as  his  name  was  called 
and  get  his  letter,  and  be  envied  by  his  lucky  fellow  citi- 
zen. There  were  some  touching  scenes  on  these  occa- 
sions.  Many  of  the  men  had  not  heard  from  home  and 
friends  for  many  months,  some  of  them  not  for  years. 
There  were  many  surprises  in  the  letters.  Some  of 
them  brought  joy  to  the  hearts  of  those  who  read  them, 
but  there  were  others  to  whom  the  missives  meant  only 
disappointment  and  grief,  and  so  smil  s  and  tears  mixed 
in  the  motley  gathering. 

There  are  three  or  four  doctor  and  as  many  lawyers, 
though  briefless  ones,  for  the  days  of  litigation  have  not 
v^ome,  and  nearly  every  walk  of  life  is  represented  for 
better  or  worse  in  this  arctic  city.  Nobody  bothers 
about  free  or  any  other  kind  of  coinage.  Dust  is  the 
legal  tender  and  it  is  passed  about  in  bags  and  bottles, 
big  and  little,  with  the  same  freedom  that  the  Philadel- 
phian  exchanges  his  coins  for  pins  and  potatoes.  Of 
course,  much  of  the  dust  which  has  cost  so  much  to 
gain  in  labor  and  time  and  hardship  goes  easily  and 
rapidly  over  the  bars  in  the  saloons,  and  into  the  pockets 
of  the  men  who  shuffle  dirty  cards  for  a  living,  and  into 
the  hands  of  painted-faced  women,  who  dance  very 
badly  for  the  amusement  of  their  motley  audiences. 

When  a  Circle  City  man  has  been  there  long  enough 
to  acquire  a  quantity  of  p-old  dust,  in  the  absence  of  a 


I'm 


1 


' .   ii 

<  'll 


I02 


BUCKSKIN  GOI^D  BAGS. 


bank,  he  takes  it  around  and  puts  it  into  Jack  McQues- 
tion's  or  Capt.  Healy's  safe ;  that  is,  those  who  do  not 
care  to  keep  it  themselves.  Miners  are  susceptible  to 
the  fascination  of  the  dance  hall  and  to  the  click  of  ivory 
chips,  and  they  know  it  is  better  not  to  have  their  gold 
too  convenient.  They  are  much  addicted  to  tossing 
their  nuggets  over  the  bar  and  saying  :  *'  Here,  Mack 
— never  mind  the  change;  I'll  dance  it  all  out !" 

\So  they  take  their  buckskin  bags  and  hand  them  over 
the  counter.  Some  are  long  and  slender,  with  more  room 
than  dust  in  them,  while  others  are  bulky  and  well-filled 
like  shot  bags ';  but  the  striking  thing  about  it  is  that 
there  is  no  account  taken  of  them.  The  owner's  name 
is  generally  written  on  the  bag,  but  the  dust  is  not 
weighed,  nor  is  any  entry  made  or  receipt  given  for  it. 
In  their  relations  to  each  other  these  men  are  much  like 
a  big  family.  In  one  safe  were  nuggets  and  dust  to  the 
amount  of  something  over  $100,000. 

Fort  Cudahy  and  Forty-Mile  Post  are  on  opposite 
sides  of  Forty-Mile  Creek  at  the  point  where  it  joins  the 
Yukon.  Being  in  British  territory  where  they  are  under 
the  eyes  of  the  Canadian  police,  law  and  order  are  pre- 
served with  somewhat  less  difficulty  than  at  Circle  City. 
The  latter  town  suffers  much  from  the  constant  influx  of 
undesirable  characters  who  escape  across  the  border  in 
search  of  safety  on  the  American  side.  Forty  Mile  is 
the  most  important  of  the  two  settlements,  and  the  indi- 
cations point  to  a  prosperous  future  for  it.  There  are 
some  250  cabins  there  and  the  number  is  being  con- 
stantly added  to.     No  animal  save  man  and  dog  was 


AI4ASKA  COMMERCIAIv  COMPANY. 


103 


seen  in  its  streets  until  recently,  and  there  is  not  a  wheel- 
ed vehicle  in  the  place. 

The  Alaska  Commercial  Company  has  a  two-story 
building  for  its  agents'  office,  and  there  are  others ;  a 
few  saloons  and  stores  and  the  Pioneer  Hotel,  but  there 
is  one  form  of  architecture  that  seems  to  fill  all  the  re- 
quirements of  the  climate  and  of  taste.  It  is  a  log 
house  twenty  feet  square,  with  a  perfectly  flat,  dirt- 
covered  top.  The  top  of  the  house  is  a  hanging  gar- 
den, which,  if  the  structure  is  more  than  a  year  old,  is 
covered  with  a  rank  growth  of  weeds.  When  the  town 
begins  to  take  some  note  of  its  appearance  the  mowing 
of  the  roof  will  be  one  of  the  householder's  regular 
duties. 

It  would  be  hard  to  find  anything  else  than  dirt  that 
would  keep  out  the  cold.  In  building  such  a  house 
there  is  a  groove  cut  in  what  is  to  be  the  underside  of 
each  log,  that  it  may  fit  down  snug  to  the  timber  just 
beneath  it,  and  there  is  a  packing  of  moss  put  in  all  the 
joints  between  the  logs  to  fill  all  possible  inequalities. 
Moss  is  the  best  non-conductor  of  heat  or  cold  that  the 
country  affords,  and  it  is  put  to  a  variety  of  uses  in 
building.  To  make  a  roof  a  course  of  stout  poles  is  first 
laid  across,  and  after  that  a  thick  coating  of  moss ;  then 
the  flower  garden  is  put  on — that  is,  about  a  foot  of  dirt. 
There  is  no  floor,  except  the  natural  one,  and  the  furni- 
ture is  an  after  consideration,  made  to  suit  the  require- 
ments of  the  occupants ;  a  bedstead  made  altogether  of 
poles,  as  is  usually  the  table  also,  chairs  of  great  variety 
of  design  and  finish,  a  moose-skin  rug  or  two,  and  the 


;  I'iJl 


M- 


■]  i» 


M 


m 


(    ,: 


^    U 


I04 


FORTY  MILE  HOUSE. 


invariable  Yukon  stove.  The  latter  is  made  of  sheet- 
iron,  and  weighs  about  twenty-five  pounds.  There  are 
no  vanities  of  any  sort  about  a  Forty  Mile  house.  It  is 
made  primarily  to  keep  out  the  cold.  It  has  a  single 
door — extending  no  higher  or  lower  or  wider  than  is 
necessary  for  getting  in  or  out — and  a  single  window  of 
four  small  panes  of  glass.  In  winter  another  sash  is 
put  in  to  make  a  double  thickness. 

forty  Mile  suffers,  as  do  all  the  towns  of  the  Yukon 
country,  because  of  the  uncertainty  about  supplies.  Each 
boat  on  tlie  river  carries  goods  to  its  utmost  capacity, 
but  even  that  is  not  enough,  and  when  the  next  boat 
happens  to  be  a  week  of  two  late  the  price  of  provisions 
rises  as  rapidly  from  day  to  day  as  does  wheat  in  the  pro- 
duce exchange  in  biill  times.  Arrangements  are,  how- 
ever, being  perfected  to  do  away  with  this  difHculty,  and 
human  ingenuity  will  undoubtedly  succeed  at  this  task. 

The  great  man  of  Forty  Mile  is  at  present  a  Swede 
named  Johnny  Miller.  He  has  been  in  Alaska  eight 
years,  and  hope  had  nearly  failed  him  when  last  winter 
he  started  a  hole  in  the  ground  out  of  which  he  took 
within  a  few  weeks  more  than  250  pounds  of  the  yellow 
metal,  and  he  is  still  taking  it  out. 

The  gold  diggings  of  the  Yukon  are  graded  according 
to  their  depth  as  winter  and  summer  mines,  a  classifica- 
tion that  has  been  recognized  only  within  the  last  two 
years.  Until  within  that  time  the  miners  considered  it 
impracticable  to  do  any  work  in  the  winter,  and  so  they 
hibernated  for  eight  long,  dark  months,  consuming  what 
they  had  earned  during  the  short  summer  season.    Win- 


WINTB&  WORK. 


105 


ter  was  a  time  for  gambling  and  dissipation,  and  they  all 
collected  at  Forty  Mile,  and  whiled  away  the  long  night 
of  self-imposed  imprisonment. 

Though  the  people  of  Forty  Mile  still  expect  quite  a 
muster  from  the  mines  at  the  approach  of  cold  weather, 
there  is  a  very  radical  change  from  the  old  order.  They 
have  discovered  that  they  can  accomplish  more  in  winter 
than  in  summer,  and  as  a  consequence  the  working  year 
is  three  times  as  long  as  it  used  to  be.  And  here  comes 
in  the  utility  of  classifying  the  diggings  according  to  their 
depth.  If  the  gold  lies  only  from  two  to  six  or  seven 
feet  from  the  surface  it  is  necessary  to  remove  all  the 
worthless  ground,  throwing  it  to  one  side  until  after  the 
pay  dirt  is  taken  out,  after  which  it  may  be  piled  where 
it  was  originally  taken  from.  The  difficulty  of  such  min- 
ing is  increased  threefold  by  the  fact  that  the  ground  is 
frozen.  Every  foot  of  it,  either  in  sinking  or  drifting,  has 
to  be  thawed  by  small  fires.  The  shallower  mines — the 
whole  process  being  in  the  open  air — are  worked  in 
summer.  In  the  other  kind,  where  the  gravel  is  more 
than  seven  feet  from  the  surface,  they  sink  a  shaft  for  a 
beginning,  and  then  burrow  or  drift  under  the  superficial 
part,  removing  only  enough  dirt  to  allow  space  to  work 
in.  These  operations  being  under  ground,  where  the 
miner  is  protected  from  the  weather,  are  better  adapted 
for  the  cold  season.  So  the  miner  builds  his  cabin  at 
the  mouth  of  his  shafts  gets  in  a  supply  of  wood  to  the 
most  accessible  place,  and  tranquilly  views  the  approach 
of  cold  weather. 

If  he  is  of  provident  habit  it  is  not  necessary  for  him  to 


" 


IN 


io6 


DAWSON  CITY. 


expose  himself  greatly.  He  must  bring  to  the  surface 
and  dump  possibly  a  ton  of  "dead"  ground  in  a  day, 
and  also  carry  and  leave  in  a  safe  place  a  few  hundred 
pounds  of  pay  gravel.  There  is  no  necessity  for  being 
out  of  doors  more  than  a  minute  or  two  at  a  time. 

If  one  is  prepared,  for  them,  the  winters  at  the  mines 
are  not  billing  bad  by  any  means.  Seventy  degrees  be- 
low zero  is  about  the  coldest,  but  that  is  not  of  frequent 
occurrence.  There  is  a  good  deal  of  dry,  still  weather, 
with  the  thermometer  from  io°to  30®  below,  and  as  much 
probably,  early  and  late  iii  the  season,  when  it  hardly 
falls  below  the  zero  mark. 

August  and  September  are  the  months  for  preparing 
for  winter  and  also  for  prospecting.  During  that  time  a 
great  many  of  the  men  hunt  for  awhile  and  endeavor  to 
lay  in  a  supply  of  fresh  meat. 

West  of  tfie  Klondike  River  at  its  junction  with  the 
Yukon  and  on  the  north  bank  of  the  latter  is  located  the 
now  world  famous  camp  called  Dawson  City.  It  is  the 
metropolis  of  the  Klondike  country  and  if  not  the  largest 
city  in  the  world,  it  now  takes  first  rank  among  the  live- 
liest and  most  thriving.  For  months  thousands  have 
turned  their  eyes  toward  it  longingly.  Hundreds  have 
arrived  there  within  the  last  few  weeks  and  hundreds 
more  are  striving  with  all  the  energy  and  persistence 
man  is  capable  of  to  get  there.  Unless  something  un- 
forseen  occurs  it  will  have  many  thousands  within  its 
fold  before  another  year  has  passed.  In  the  meantime; 
all  isbusde.  Homes,  ofHces,  stores,  churches  and  all  the 
other  requisites  of  a  big  town  in  the  way  of  buildings  are 


Ml' 


y-- 


mppqinf 


Piwpp 


rikce 
day, 
dred 
>eing 

lines 
i  be- 
uent 
ther, 
nuch 
irdly 


mng 
nea 
jr  to 

I  the 
I  the 
3  the 
•gest 
live- 
bave 
liave 
reds 
ence 
un- 
1  its 
timf; 
[the 
(are 


Chilkoot  Mountains — Route  to  Mines. 


Mt.  St.  Elias  and,  Mum  Glazier, 


BUSINESS  HOUSES. 


109 


being  hurried  to  completion  for  present  and  future  uses 
and  hundreds  of  busy  hands  are  delving  in  the  gulches 
and  canons  and  mountains  and  streams  beyond  for  the 
yellow  treasure  that  brought  Dawson  into  existence. 

Dawson  City  is  in  the  character  of  its  buildings  and 
inhabitants  much  like  its  sister  camps.  There  are  at 
present  two  stores.  One  of  the  Alaska  Commercial 
Company,  the  other  of  the  North  American  Transporta- 
tion and  Trading  Company.  On  these  two  establish- 
ments everyone  who  goes  to  Dawson  without  provisions 
must  rely  mainly.  Even  those  who  have  a  good  outfit 
will  find  it  often  necessary  to  patronize  one  or  other  of 
the  stores.  Prices  are  on  an  average  three  times  as  high 
as  at  Juneau  or  St.  Michaels  and  four  to  five  times  as 
steep  as  in  San  Francisco.  When  the  winter  is  nearly 
over  and  supplies  begin  to  run  short  prices  are,  as  a 
consequence,  raised.  Toward  the  close  of  last  winter 
before  the  new  supplies  came  up  the  river  prices  were 
doubled.  All  through  the  winter  men  arrive  at  such 
mining  towns  as  Dawson  City,  bringing  with  them  from 
one  to  two  tons  of  food  and  clothing.  They  go  up  the 
streams  and  peddle  their  goods,  taking  care  to  lose 
nothing  for  their  time  and  trouble. 

There  is  but  one  blackirmith  shop  and  to  this  place  all 
the  miners  for  miles  around  must  go  to  have  their  tools 
repaired  or  for  the  purpos'j  of  getting  implements  made 
to  order  which  the  stores  cannot  supply. 

Dawson  City  can  boast  of  two  good  practicing  physi- 
cians— Police  Surgeon  Wills  and  another  doctor  who 
went  from  Circle  City  tc  Dawson  last  year.    They  carry 


c 


I  lif.iiyi»"»— 


ap 


IIO 


WAGES  PRBVAIUNO. 


■■■  I.; 


their  own  supplies  of  staple  drugs  and  medicines,  so  as 
to  be  able  to  compound  their  own  prescriptions.  Ordi- 
nary remedies  are  to  be  obtained  at  the  two  trading 
stores.  There  was  one  lodging-house  in  Dawson  last 
winter,  though  the  name  lodging-house  is  a  courtesy  in 
this  case.  It  was  a  low,  log  house  and  is  now  being  re- 
placed by  a  better  one.  Laborers  in  the  mines  and 
handicraftsmen  fare  about  the  same,  though  carpenters 
last  winter  obtained  $20  a  day,  whereas  miners  got  $15. 
The  difficulty  is  to  find  men  willing  to  work  at  their 
trades. 

The  cost  of  living  at  Dawson  for  a  man  living  alone 
varies  from  $5.00  to  $10.00  a  day.  Single  m  's  have 
been  costing  $1.50.  There  are  two  assayers  nd  fifty 
will  be  there  by  next  spring  probably.  Overalls  cost 
$3.00  a  pair;  stockings,  $1.50;  coats  and  trousers, 
$10.00  each  and  upwards ;  shoes,  $8.00  a  pair ;  shirts, 
JJ5.00;  flour,  $12.00  per  hundred;  pans,  $2.50;  picks, 
$7.00,  and  so  on. 

Joseph  Ladue,  one  of  the  most  celebrated  of  the 
Alaska  bonanza  kings,  was  the  founder  of  Dawson  City 
and  the  owner  of  the  site.  He  has  done  much  to  insure 
the  future  prosperity  of  the  city  by  encouraging  the 
building  of  a  school  house  and  promoting  other  institu- 
tions. While  there  has  been  much  of  the  usual  excite- 
ment of  the  mining  camp  at  Dawson,  considering  the 
character  of  the  population  very  litde  trouble  of  any 
kind  has  thus  far  been  reported.  Gambling  for  high 
stakes  is  to  be  seen  on  every  side,  but  the  Canadian 
government  is  making  a  desperate  effort  to  curb  the 


NO  I^IQUORS. 


Ill 


liquor  traffic  and  its  consequent  evils.  The  law  against 
carrying  fire  arms  is  as  strictly  enforced  as  is  possible, 
and  the  result  of  this  is  noteworthy. 

Collector  Ivey,  who  has  gone  to  Alaska  to  assume 
charge  of  the  customs  district  of  that  Territory,  it  is 
understood,  has  specific  instructions  from  the  Treasury 
Department  to  enforce  to  the  letter  the  executive  order 
restricting  the  importation  and  sale  of  liquors  in  Alaska. 

Under  the  laws  governing  the  Territory  of  Alaska,  no 
liquors,  malt  or  vinous,  can  be  imported,  manufactured, 
or  sold  there,  save  by  a  special  permit,  allowing  their 
use  for  medicinal,  mechanical  or  scientific  purposes. 
Despite  this  regulation,  there  are  now  in  Alaska  fi\  ^ 
breweries  in  operation,  and  142  other  places  where 
liquors  are  sold.  Alaska  is  in  the  internal  revenue  dis- 
trict of  Oregon,  and  during  the  year  1896  there  were 
147  special  taxes  collected  from  persons  engaged  in  sell- 
ing liquor.  There  are  numerous  saloons  in  Juneau, 
Sitka,  and  other  Alaskan  towns  where  liquor  is  obtained 
for  the  asking,  and  no  attempt  is  made  to  conceal  the 
fact  that  this  business  is  being  carried  on.  The  special 
tax  which  every  one  in  the  liquor  business  is  forced  to 
pay  is  not  issued  as  a  license,  or  to  afford  any  protection 
to  the  holder,  as  it  is  expressly  stated  thereon  that  the 
same  shall  not  be  in  conflict  with  any  municipal,  county 
or  State  laws  concerning  the  regulation  of  the  liquor 
traffic. 

The  sale  of  liquor  in  Alaska  is  only  allowed  under  the 
Executive  order  for  medicinal,  mechanical  or  scientific 
purposes,  by  persons  who  obtain  a  permit  to  do  so  from 


i'i 


r 


w 


112 


8PBCIAL  RBGUI^ATIONS. 


the  Governor  of  the  Territory.  Before  the  permit  is 
issued  the  applicant  has  to  make  an  affidavit  and  furnish 
a  bond  in  not  less  than  $500  that  he  will  not  sell  intoxi- 
cating liquors  to  any  person  not  known  to  him,  or  duly 
identified,  nor  to  a  person  in  the  habit  of  becoming  in- 
toxicated, nor  on  his  premises,  and  that  he  will  make  full 
returns  of  the  disposition  of  liquor  he  is  permitted  to 
have.  Every  person  under  the  regulations  who  secures 
a  permit  from  the  Governor  to  sell  liquors  for  medicinal, 
mechanical  and  scientific  purposes  is  required  to  secure 
from  the  Collector  of  the  Oregon  district  a  special  tax 
receipt  as  a  liquor  dealer.  Two  of  the  breweries  pay  a 
special  tax  on  the  manufacture  of  500  barrels  of  beer 
or  over,  and  the  remaing  three  on  less  than  500.  The 
other  special  taxes  are  issued  to  druggists  and  retail 
liquor  dealers. 

Just  ho  y  five  breweries  and  142  other  places  can  find 
it  a  paying  business  to  sell  liquors  only  for  medicinal, 
mechanical  and  scientific  purposes  is  the  question  that 
Collector  Iv^y  has  to  wresde  with.  It  is  understood  that 
he  has  explicit  instructions  to  enforce  the  regulations 
against  liquor  in  his  district,  and,  if  he  does,  the  law, 
hitherto  more  honored  in  the  breach  than  in  its  obser- 
vance, is  likely  to  become  odious,  and  be  followed  by  a 
strong  effort  to  secure  the  removal  of  the  present  re- 
strictions. 

On  the  American  side  the  only  laws  which  are  en- 
forced to  keep  order  in  the  camps  are  such  as  the  peo- 
ple themselves  have  made.  Lynch  law  and  the  regula- 
tions of  the  Vigilantes,  who  are  organized  in  the  larger 


MOUNTED  POUCS. 


"3 


towns,  are  the  only  codes  really  effective,  as  the  forces 
of  the  American  government  do  not  at  present  extend 
beyond  the  older  settlements  of  the  coast.  But  on  the 
Canadian  side  the  case  is  different. 

Here  and  there  among  the  mass  of  matter  that  has 
been  written  concerning  the  wonderful  Klondike  mines, 
brief  allusions  have  been  made  to  the  fact  that  a  little 
body  of  mounted  police  has  been  patrolling  the  district 
ever  since  the  excitement  began,  keeping  perfect  order 
and  preserving  among  the  constandy  swelling  popula- 
tions of  the  various  camps  as  peaceable  conditions  as 
can  be  found  in  the  heart  of  any  highly  civilized  commu- 
nity. And  in  all  the  speculation  concerning  the  future 
of  the  locality,  its  probable  immense  growth  and  the  fear 
of  starvation,  sickness  and  death,  no  fear  has  ever  been 
expressed  that  anything  in  the  nature  of  lawlessness  or 
crime  may  get  the  upper  hand  and  run  rampant,  or  that 
property  rights  and  safety  of  the  person  will  be  in  the 
least  danger.  * 

Though  the  excellent  British  mining  laws,  or  rather, 
laws  founded  by  the  Canadians  on  British  precedent,  are 
in  the  main  responsible  for  this  feelin^  of  security,  the 
men  who  undertake  their  enforcement  are,  after  all,  en- 
titled to  a  great  share  of  the  credit,  for  good  laws,  illy 
enforced,  are  worse  than  useless.  The  Northwest 
Mounted  Police  of  Canada,  a  body  whose  wonderful  dis- 
cipline and  bravery  have  given  the  Dominion  food  for 
most  of  her  later  literature,  are  the  officers  in  whose 
hands  has  been  placed  the  carrying  out  of  these  laws, 
and  at  this  time,  therefore,  something  concerning  that 


114 


INDIAN  TROUBI^ES. 


organization  and.  its  internal  workings    should  be  of 
interest. 

The  Northwest  Mounted  Police,  whose  scarlet  tunic  is 
the  symbol  of  law  and  order  in  the  Northwest,  were 
organized  when  Alexander  Mackenzie  was  Premier,  and 
were  one  of  Sir  John  Macdonald's  inspirations,  and  after 
his  return  to  power,  in  1878, they  always  remained  under 
his  own  eye.  The  nucleus  of  the  force  was  got  together 
at  Manitoba  in  1873.  They  originally  numbered  300, 
and  by  their  coolness  and  pluck,  at  critical  periods,  they 
accomplished  much  in  reducing  the  Indians  and  lawless 
whisky  traders  to  a  state  of  order.  The  police  built 
posts  and  protected  the  white  setders  and  the  surveyors, 
who  had  already  begun  parceling  out  the  country  and 
exploring  the  route  of  the  Canadian  Pacific  Railway.  In 
1877,  nearly  the  whole  of  the  little  force  was  concen- 
trated on  the  southwestern  frontier  to  watch  and  check 
the  6000  Sioux,  who  sought  refuge  in  Canada  after  their 
defeat  and  massacre  of  Custer  and  his  little  command 
on  the  Little  Big  Horn.  It  was  through  the  efforts  of 
the  Mounted  Police  that  the  Sioux  were  finally  induced 
to  surrender  peacefully  to  the  United  States  authorities 
in  1880-81.  After  the  outbreak  of  the  half-breeds  under 
Louis  Reil,  in  1885,  the  force  was  increased  to  1000 
men,  their  present  number. 

The  Mounted  Police,  like  the  Royal  Irish  Constabu- 
lary, on  which  it  was  modeled,  is  in  the  eye  of  the  law  a 
purely  civil  body.  Its  ofificers  are  magistrates,  the  men 
are  constables.  But  so  far  as  circumstances  will  allow, 
its  organization,  internal  economy  and  drill  are  those  of 


POI^ICE  ORGANIZATION. 


"5 


a  cavalry  regiment,  and  when  on  active  service  in  a  mili- 
tary capacity  the  officers  have  army  rank.  The  affairs  of 
the  force  are  managed  by  a  distinct  department  of  the 
Government  at  Ottawa,  under  tlie  supervision  of  a 
Cabinet  Minister.  The  executive  command  is  held  by 
an  officer  styled  the  Commissioner  and  ranking  as  Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel. The  Assistant  Commissioner  ranks 
with  a  Major,  and  after  three  years'  service  as  a  Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel. Ten  superintendents,  with  captains' 
rank,  command  the  division:^,  with  about  thirty-five  in- 
spectors as  subalterns,  who  correspond  to  lieutenants. 
The  medical  staff  consists  of  a  surgeon,  five  assistant 
surgeons  and  two  veterinary  surgeons.  The  non-com- 
missioned officers  are  as  in  the  army,  while  the  troopers 
are  called  constables. 

The  rank  and  file  are  not  excelled  by  any  picked  corps 
in  any  service.  A  recruit  must  be  between  twenty-two 
ad  forty-five  years  old,  of  good  character,  able  to  read 
and  write  English  or  French,  active,  well-built  and  of 
sound  constitution.  The  physique  is  very  fine,  the  aver- 
age of  the  whole  thousand  being  five  feet  nine  and  a  half 
inches  in  height,  and  thirty-eight  and  a  half  inches 
round  the  chest. 

There  has  always  been  an  unusual  proportion  of  men 
of  good  family  and  education  in  the  service.  Lots  of 
young  Englishmen  who  came  out  to  try  their  hand  at 
farming  la  the  far  west  have  drifted  into  the  police,  as 
also  many  well-connected  Canadians,  Waifs  and  strays 
from  everywhere  and  of  every  calling  are  to  be  found  in 
the  ranks.     The  roll  call  would  show  many  defaulters  if 


?  1 


T 


ii6 


POSTAI«  FACIUTIBS. 


no  man  answered  to  any  name  but  his  own.  There  is 
at  least  one  lord  in  the  force  and  many  university  gradu- 
ates. 

The  officers'  pay  is  not  large,  ranging  from  $2400  a 
year  to  the  Commissioner  to  $1000  to  the  inspectors, 
with,  of  course,  quarters,  rations,  fuel,  etc. 

The  Klondike  is  even  more  squeamish  on  some  points 
than  some  older  diggings,  like  Gotham  and  Paris. 
Bloomers  don't  go.  Capt.  Constantine,  of  the  Canadian 
mounted  police  says  so,  and  from  his  words  there  is  no 
appeal.  The  new  women  can  straddle  Chilkoot  Pass  in 
bloomers  if  they  like,  but  in  the  chaste  and  refined  so- 
ciety circles  of  Dawson  and  Cudahy,  skirts  are  "en 
regie  " — even  if  **  de  trop." 

No  one  ever  locks  a  cabin  door.  You  can  leave  a  few 
thousands  in  gold  dust  lying  around  loose,  and  on  one 
will  steal  it.  This  forbearance  is  not  so  remarkable  as 
it  seems.  If  a  thief  did  steal  when  there  is  nothing  to 
break  through  he  couldn't  spend  his  money  or  leave  the 
country  unsuspected. 

It  will  be  of  interest  to  know  that  there  are  post  office 
facilities  for  the  gold  fields  of  Alaska,  and  the  Northwest 
territory,  for  many  persons  have  started  for  that  region 
and  their  friends  will  naturally  be  anxious  to  hear  from 
them.  Additional  contracts  for  the  delivery  of  mail  have 
been  made  in  the  Post  Ofifice  Department  in  view  of  the 
influx  of  Americans  there. 

Since  July  ist  contracts  for  mail  over  what  is  known 
as  ''the  overland  route  "  from  Juneau  to  Circle  City  have 
been  made  by  the  department.    The  round  trip  over  the 


VARIOUS  PLANS. 


117 


Chilkoot  Pass  and  by  way  of  the  chain  of  lakes  and  the 
Lewes  river  takes  about  a  month,  the  distance  being 
about  900  miles.  There  will  be  a  mail  carrying  party  to 
leave  regularly  on  the  first  of  each  month  hereafter. 
The  cost  is  about  $600  for  the  round  trip.  The  Chilkoot 
Pass  is  crossed  with  the  mail  by  means  of  Indian  carriers. 
On  the  previous  trips  the  carriers  after  finishing  the  pass 
built  the  boats,  but  they  now  have  their  own  to  pass 
the  lakes  and  the  Lewes  river. 

In  the  winter,  transportation  is  carried  on  by  means  of 
dog  sleds,  and  it  is  hoped  that  under  the  present  con- 
tracts there  will  be  no  stoppage,  no  matter  how  low  the 
temperature  may  go.  The  contractor  has  reported  that 
he  was  sending  a  boat,  in  sections,  by  way  of  St.  Michael, 
up  the  Yukon  river,  to  be  used  on  the  waterway  of  the 
route,  and  it  is  thought  much  time  will  be  saved  by  this, 
as  in  former  times  it  was  necessary  for  the  carriers  to 
stop  and  build  boats  or  rafts  to  pass  the  lakes. 

In  addition  to  this  for  the  summer  season,  contracts 
have  been  made  with  two  steamboat  companies  for  t<vo 
trips  from  Seatde  to  St.  Michael,  and  three  from  there  to 
Seattle.  When  the  steamers  reach  St.  Michael,  the  mail 
will  be  transferred  from  the  steamers  to  the  flat-bottomed 
boa^  running  up  the  Yukon  as  far  as  Circle  City.  It  is 
believed  tlie  boats  now  run  further  up. 

The  contracts  for  the  overland  route  call  for  only  first- 
class  matter,  whereas  the  steamers  in  the  summer  season 
carry  everything  up  to  five  tons  a  trip. 

Some  extracts  from  the  ofificial  report  of  the  second 
assistant  postmaster  general  for  the  fiscal  year  ending 


f  .1' 


f  i 


'J 


I 


:l 


ii8 


BBDDOE'S  REPORT. 


June  I,  1896,  will  prove  of  interest.  Under  date  of  Sep- 
tember 23,  1896,  contractor  Beddoe  wrote  to  the  depart- 
ment concerning  the  trip  to  Circle  City,  the  establishment 
of  that  post  office  having  been  authorized  March  1 9,  1 896: 

He  says: 

"  I  have  just  returned  from  my  first  round  trip  through 
to  Circle  City  with  the  United  States  mail,  under  con- 
tract route  No.  78,103,  and  in  accordance  with  your  in- 
structions, corroborating  those  received  through  the 
superintendent  of  the  Pacific  coast,  at  Seattle,  I  delivered 
the  return  mail  from  Circle  City  to  the  postmaster  at 
Seattle  and  accompanied  to  Juneau  such  mail  as  remained 
for  that  point. 

*'I  have  already  delivered  (or  have  en  route)  the  mail 
for  June,  July,  August  and  September.  It  will  be  im- 
possible for  any  other  mail  to  leave  here  until  spring, 
outside  of  the  winter  contract. 

"If  you  were  familiar  with  the  conditions  which  obtain 
in  the  Yukon  you  would  be  in  a  bette'  position  to  re- 
gulate the  dates  of  departure  and  arrival  for  said  service. 
For  instance,  I  left  this  point  on  June  10  for  Dyea;  for 
sixteen  hours  it  was  impossible  to  land  owing  to  storms, 
and  as  the  landing  is  made  in  small  boats,  the  condi- 
tions must  be  favorable.  I  took  with  me  sufficient 
lumber  to  build  two  boats;  the  ones  I  had  already  built 
could  not  be  taken  over  the  summit  in  consequence  of 
excessive  snow  storms.  Upon  my  arrival  at  the  base  of 
the  summit  the  Indian  packers  refused  to  go  over  with 
the  lumber.  I  was  compelled  to  abandon  it  there,  hav- 
ing paid  $67.50  for  packing  it.     The  packing  of  sup- 


DIFPICUI^TIES  OVERCOME. 


119 


plies,  etc.,  cost  $320  additional.  However,  I  pushed  on 
and  upon  arriving  at  Lake  Lindeman,  a  distance  of 
thirty  miles,  I  built  a  raft,  there  being  no  lumber  in  that 
locality,  and  upon  this  raft  we  journed  to  Lake  Bennett, 
where  we  found  sufficient  lumber  to  build  a  boat.  A 
start  was  made  in  five  days  after  arrival,  although  the 
lumber  had  to  be  cut  from  the  trees,  and  from  there  on 
we  traveled  day  and  night  until  our  destination.  Circle 
City,  was  reached  and  the  mails  delivered  in  good  order. 

"The  question  now  was  to  get  the  return  mail  to 
Juneau  the  quickest  moment.  It  was  impossible  to 
start  up  the  river  in  consequence  of  the  rapid  water, 
the  current  averaging  eight  miles  an  hour  for  500  miles. 
If  I  remained  in  Circle  City  until  July  30  it  would 
probably  take  forty-five  days  to  pole  the  boat  up  the 
river.  I  therefore  decided  to  go  on  down  to  St.  Michaels 
and  come  out  through  Bering  Sea.  I  was  fortunate  in 
getting  there  in  time  for  the  steamship  "Portland,"  which 
sailed  from  that  point  to  Seattle,  via  Unalaska — 3,500 
miles.  At  Seattle,  I  took  the  Alki  and  reached  here  in 
due  course,  having  traveled  6,500  miles  in  addition  to 
the  regular  trip,  and  saving  thereby  over  a  month  of 
time  in  the  delivery  of  the  return  mail;  and  I  owe  it  to 
myself  to  say  that  I  was  the  last  man  into  the  Yukon 
and  the  first  one  out  this  season,  which  is  evidence  that 
no  unnecessary  delay  occured. 

"The  Yukon  trip  is  a  terrible  one,  the  current  of  the 
river  even  attaining  ten  miles  an  hour.  Miles  Canyon  is 
a  veritable  death  trap  into  which  one  is  likely  to  be  drawn 
without  notice,  and  the  White  Horse  rapids,  known  as 


■It 


I 


; 


I20 


WHIT9  H0RS9  RAPIDS. 


the  miners'  grave,  to  say  nothing  of  the  Five  Finger  and 
Rink  rapids,  both  of  which  'are  very  dangerous.  All  of 
these  dangers  are  aggravated  by  reason  of  the  defective 
maps  and  reports  of  the  country. 

"  It  is  my  intention  to  submit  to  the  department  a  map 
with  many  corrections,  although  in  the  absence  of  a 
proper  survey  it  will  necessarily  be  only  an  approximate 
reflection  of  the  river's  course.  You  are  probably  not 
aware  that  for  a  distance  of  1 50  miles,  commencing  at 
Circle  City,  and  going  north,  the  river  is  fifty  miles  be- 
tween banks,  and  contains  thousands  of  islands,  very  few 
of  which  appear  on  any  map. 

"It  is  impossible  to  perform  this  mail  contract  without 
having  at  least  three  parties  fully  equipped,  the  distance 
being  so  gi'eat  and  it  being  out  of  the  question  for  the 
first  party  to  return  in  time  to  depart  with  the  succeeding 
mail,  and  the  expense  of  each  will  be  about  the  same.  I 
shall  have  made  four  round  trips  by  the  end  of  this  month. 
The  last  mail  in  should  arrive  at  Circle  City  in  one  week 
from  now.  The  return  mails  I  am  looking  for  daily.  At 
the  end  of  this  month  the  north  end  of  the  Yukon  river 
will  freeze  and  the  ice  will  gradually  form  to  the  south, 
and  the  same,  as  a  waterway,  will  become  impassable 
and  remain  so  until  midwinter.^' 


CHAPTER  VI. 

PLACER  MINING. 

Ancient  and  modern  methods  as  applied  to  the  Klondike  fields — How  the  riches  are 
carried  from  mountain  to  gulch  and  plain — Pans,  rockers,  sluice^boxes,  and 
other  implements  of  the  miner's  craft — Watching  for  the  yellovr  metal  in  the 
streams  of  muddy  water — The  wonders  of  hydraulic  operations — Methods  in 
vogue  on  the  fi'oze&  gravels  of  Alaska — Opinions  of  experts  on  the  present  and 
future. 

IN  spite  of  the  fact  that  gold  has  been  known  to  man 
and  struggled  for  since  pre-historic  times,  it  is  only 
within  the  last  half-century  that  any  satisfactory  methods 
have  been  employed  for  its  extraction  from  the  earth. 
The  discoveries  in  California  in  1849,  followed  almost 
immediately  by  thor'  in  Australia,  turned  the  energies 
of  thousands  of  able,  active,  intelligent  men  into  this 
new  channel.  In  the  mad  race  for  wealth  which  then 
ensued,  the  primitive  methods  in  use  up  to  that  time 
were  found  to  be  too  crude  and  too  slow  to  satisfy  the 
ambitions  of  modern  gold  diggers.  This  is  particularly 
true  of  the  methods  then  and  now  in  vogue  for  working 
the  poorer  alluvials  and  low-grade  reefs  which  remain 
after  the  rich  shallow  placers  and  superficial  pockets  of 
gold  quartz  have  been  exausted  on  a  claim. 

Without  going  deeply  into  the  subject  of  the  forma- 
tion of  the  element  known  to  the  world  as  gold,  it  is  suf- 
ficient to  say  that  the  mineral  is  deposited  in  ledges  or 

121 


m 


122 


QUARTZ  MINING. 


veins  of  quartz,  ranging  in  thickness  from  the  leaf  to 
several  inches.  There  are  instances,  though  very  few, 
where  these  veins  have  reached  several  feet  of  almost 
pure  gold.  These  veins  extend  from  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  in  a  slanting  direction,  sometimes  several  thou- 
sand feet  into  the  earth.  The  surface  ends  of  these 
ledges  are  often  exposed  on  the  edge  of  a  mountain,  and 
have  come  to  be  known  in  the  mining  world  as  the  "  out- 
croppings."  Often,  however,  they  are  covered  by  sev- 
eral feet  of  forbidding  gravel  and  earth  and  only  the 
patient  labors  of  the  gold  seeker  reveal  them.  Undoubt- 
edly thousands  of  these  precious  ledges  remain  unknown 
to  man,  and  probably  will  remain  so  always  unless  some 
strange  chance,  such  as  revealed  some  of  those  in  the 
Klondike  and  elsewhere,  should  lead  daring  and  ambi- 
tious miners  to  the  places  where  they  rest. 

The  taking  of  the  yellow  metal  from  the  ledges  is 
known  comprehensively  as  quartz  mining,  and  the  pro- 
cesses by  which  it  is  done  are  varied  according  to  local 
conditions. 

Ages  have  elapsed  since  the  deposit  of  the  gold  in 
the  rock  ledges,  and  the  forces  of  nature  have  proved 
themselves  more  active  and  persistent  in  extracting  the 
precious  metal  than  the  host  of  hungry,  anxious  miners 
will  ever  oe.  As  time  passed  the  action  of  the  water 
and  other  agencies  on  the  rock  masses  caused  them  to 
crumble  and  liberate  the  exposed  treasure.  This  gold, 
once  free,  has  been  carried  to  lower  altitudes  and  de- 
posited in  the  caftons,  gulches,  flats,  and  river  bars  from 


METHODS  PURSUED. 


123 


the  mountains  to  the  sea.  The  gathering  of  this  loose, 
drifted  gold  is  what  is  known  as  placer  mining. 

In  Alaska,  thus  far,  vein  or  quartz  mining  has  been 
attempted  only  on  the  coast.  In  the  Yukon  districts 
placer  mining  is  the  only  form  in  use.  This  is  due  to 
various  causes.  The  main  obstacle  up  to  the  present 
time  has  been  the  cost  of  labor,  which,  in  the  interior, 
very  rarely  gets  below  $15  a  day,  and  often  exceeds 
that  figure.  Then,  again,  vein  mining  requires  the  trans- 
portation and  erection  of  costly  and  heavy  machinery, 
which,  in  a  country  as  poorly  provided  with  transporta- 
tion facilities  as  is  the  interior  of  Alaska,  would  involve 
untold  expense.  There  is  every  reason  to  believe  that 
the  interior  is  richly  endowed  with  gold  quartz,  and  with 
the  development  of  the  country  will  probably  come  the 
development  of  this  feature  of  gold  mining.  This  has 
been  the  history  of  the  California  fields — first  the  placer 
and  then  the  veins,  and  history  will  probably  repeat  itself. 
The  sequence  is  a  natural  one.  Man  will  surely  seek 
the  source  of  his  supplies,  whatever  they  may  be,  sooner 
or  later. 

The  usual  methods  pursued  in  placer  mining  are  very 
simple.  Even  the  most  improved  process,  though  saving 
much  time  and  labor,  is  still  not  an  intricate  one.  The 
specific  gravity  of  gold  is  much  greater  than  that  of  any 
rock,  gravel,  or  earth  with  which  it 's  found.  It  is  many 
centuries  since  man  discovered  this  fact,  and  upon  it  all 
the  methods  of  extraction  are  based.  The  gold-bearing 
gravels,  sands,  and  muds  are  turned  into  a  receptacle 


ti 


K 


124 


USE  OF  THE  "  PAN." 


11 


of  some  kind  when  with  the  aid  of  water  the  precious 
metal  is  worked  to  the  bottom,  the  lighter  substances 
removed,  and  the  treasure  revealed. 

The  most  common  implement  among  placer  miners  is 
the  "pan."  It  costs  only  a  few  cents,  and  with  it  any 
man  in  a  rich  district  can  make  fair  wages  every  day, 
and  many  a  lucky  one  has  turned  a  fortune  out  of  it. 
This  receptacle  closely  resembles  the  ordinary  milk-pan. 
It  holds  usually  about  six  qi  arts,  and  is  made  of  heavy 
tin  or  zinc.  The  miner  goes  to  the  gravel  banks  along 
the  streams,  where  deposits  of  precious  metal  are  be- 
lieved to  be,  and  fills  his  pan.  Conveying  the  material 
to  the  water,  he  selects  a  place  where  there  is  little  or 
no  current,  immerses  his  pan  entirely  in  the  water,  and 
then  shakes  the  gravel  in  the  pan  thoroughly  under 
the  water.  The  pan  is  held  with  both  hands,  and  so 
shaken  that  the  gravel  is  given  a  circular  motion, 
two  or  three  motions  being  sufficient  to  precipitate 
the  gold  to  the  bottom  of  the  pan.  The  pan,  still 
beneath  the  surface  of  the  water,  is  then  held  so  that 
the  outer  edge  dips  downward  at  an  angle  of  ten  or 
fifteen  degrees,  and  the  gravel  is  made  to  slowly  slide 
out  of  the  pan  by  a  backward  and  forward  movement, 
care  being  taken,  after  a  portion  of  the  gravel  has  been 
expelled,  to  again  give  the  pan  the  circular  motion,  so 
as  to  be  sure  that  the  gold  is  kept  at  the  bottom.  Not 
more  than  a  half-minute  is  required  to  get  rid  of  the 
gravel,  and  there  will  be  nothing  left  in  the  pan  but  a 
little  "black  sand"  (magnetic  iron),  which  always accom- 


! 


;l 


NHP 


:i 


COLORS  FOUND. 


127 


panics  gold  in  gravel,  and  whatever  particles  of  gold 
were  contained  in  the  gravel.  The  pieces  or  specks  of 
gold  are  then  easily  seen,  and  by  their  number  or  quality 
the  prospector  judges  somewhat  as  to  the  wages  he  can 
make  by  washing  the  gravel.  The  specks  of  gold  are 
called  "colors  "by  the  old  hand.  A  very  few  of  these 
welcome  "  colors  "  in  a  single  pan  will  demonstrate  to 
the  miner  the  value  of  the  gravel  in  which  he  is  prospect- 
ing. If  he  is  a  poor  man  or  lacks  energy  he  will  proba- 
bly continue  to  use  the  pan  like  thousands  of  others, 
putting  the  few  bits  of  yellow  metal  away  in  bags  and 
botdes  day  after  day,  until  he  has  by  laborious  effort 
gleaned  enough  to  satisfy  him  or  worked  out  the  gravel 
in  that  location. 

But  the  energetic  miner  uses  the  pan  only  by  way  of 
experiment.  Once  having  found  the  "  colors  "  with  the 
aid  of  that  crude  implement,  he  turns  to  other  methods 
to  develop  his  find.  Next  after  the  pan  in  the  way  of 
invention  came  the  "  rocker."  It  is  not  unlike  the  crude 
bed  in  which  our  grandparents  slept  as  babies.  It  is  a 
box  on  rockers,  about  four  feet  long,  two  feet  wide,  and 
several  inches  in  depth,  with  the  upper  end  elevated  so 
that  the  water  will  pass  through  freely.  A  hopper,  or 
riddle  box,  with  perforated  sheet-iron  bottom,  occupies 
the  upper  half.  Under  this  is  an  apron  of  cloth  or  sheet- 
iron,  sloping  downward  toward  the  upper  end.  Two 
cleats  are  nailed  across  the  bottom,  one  in  the  middle 
and  one  at  the  lower  end.  The  riddle  box  being  filled 
with  auriferous  dirt  from  the  bank,  the  miner  rocks  the 


w    ' 


'H 


128 


THE  SLUICE-BOX. 


cradle,  pouring  water  in  meanwhile  to  dissolve  the  mass. 
The  latter  is  carried  through  the  perforations  upon  the 
apron  and  thence  down  over  the  bottom  of  the  "rocker" 
to  the  lower  end  and  out  into  the  stream.  The  gold, 
being  heavy,  is  lodged  behind  the  cleats  or  '*  riffles,"  and 
there  the  miner  gathers  them  and  repeats  the  operation. 
The  finer  particles  of  gold  are  often  lodged  on  the  apron, 
and  this  is  frequently  washed  in  a  bucket  and  the  metal 
taken  from  the  bottom. 

After  the  locker  came  the  "Long  Tom,"  which  is  a 
rough  trough  ten  or  twelve  feet  long,  narrow  at  the 
upper  end  and  wider  at  the  lower.  It  is  placed  on  an 
incline.  It  has  an  iron  plate  on  the  bottom  which  is  per- 
forated so  that  the  gold  will  drop  through  in  the  washing 
process.  This  invention,  it  will  be  readily  seen,  is  a 
development  of  the  rocker. 

The  sluice-box  was  the  next  step  taken  by  miners. 
The  one  who  has  found  "pay-dirt"  and  desires  to  get 
the  gold  to  the  mint  as  quickly  and  in  as  large  quantities 
as  possible,  soon  drops  his  pan  and  rocker  and  turns  to 
the  sluice.  The  "  sluice-box  "  may  be  constructed  of  three 
boards  twelve  feet  long  and  one  foot  wide ;  one  board 
forming  the  bottom  and  two  the  sides  of  the  box — sim- 
ply a  long,  narrow,  open  box  or  trough.  The  box  must 
be  set  on  such  a  grade  (usually  five  or  six  inches  higher 
at  the  head  of  the  box  thati  at  the  foot  or  "  tail")  that  the 
water  running  through  will  carry  off  quickly  the  stones, 
dirt,  and  general  debris.  Upon  the  bottom  of  the  box 
are  placed  "riffles,"  made  of  long,  narrow  strips  oi 


HOW  CONSTRUCTED. 


129 


boards  or  of  small  poles,  which  permit  the  gravel  to  run 
over  them,  but  into  which  the  heaviest  materials,  in- 
cluding the  "  black  sand"  and  gold  will  settle  and  remain 
secure.  The  •'  riffles  "  are  practically  slats  made  into  a 
frame  and  wedged  or  nailed  to  the  bottom  of  the  box  so 
that  they  will  not  rise  in  the  water.  The  water  neces- 
sary to  run  the  sluice-box  must  be  brought  into  it  from 
a  point  above,  so  that  grade  sufficient  to  bring  a  steady 
flow  of  water  and  allow  for  the  increased  grade  of  the 
box  will  be  secured.  The  water  is  usually  conducted  by 
what  are  termed  "lead-boxes,"  made  similar  to  the  sluice- 
box  itself.  Water  enough,  say  three  or  four  inches  deep 
in  the  box,  with  a  five-inch  grade,  to  carry  off  quickly 
the  gravel  shoveled  into  it,  is  necessary  for  good  and 
rapid  wo-ik.  After  the  miner  has  shoveled  into  his  box 
what  he  considers  a  good  day's  work  he  then  turns  off 
nearly  all  the  water  and  takes  up  his  riffles.  Water 
enough  is  left  running  to  still  carry  off  the  bulk  of  the 
dirt,  sand,  and  small  gravel  that  has  become  packed  in 
the  riffles,  leaving  nothing  behind  on  the  bottom  of  the 
box  save  the  gold,  some  sand,  and  perhaps  a  few  peb- 
bles. The  water  is  then  entirely  shut  off,  and  everything 
left  in  the  box  is  carefully  and  thoroughly  swept  into  a 
pan.  It  is  then  a  simple  matter  to  pan  this  residue  down 
to  the  clean  gold,  and  if  the  miner  finds  that  he  has,  say, 
half  a  teaspoonful  of  gold,  he  is  making  considerably 
more  than  living  wages.  v 

In  constructing  the  sluice-box  care  should  be  taken  to 
have  the  bottom-board  perfectly  sound;    that  is,  free 


1  1: 


i!! 


I 


M 


ISO 


IMPROVED  METHODS. 


i 


r 


from  knots  or  cracks — even  a  nail-hole  in  the  bottom 
would  be  sure  to  lose  a  large  portion  of  the  gold.  After  the 
side-boards  are  firmly  nailed  on,  even  if  the  box  seems 
perfectly  tight,  the  side  seams  should  be  strongly  calked 
with  old  cotton  rags.  It  is  well  to  have  the  bottom- 
board  planed,  that  it  may  be  swept  easily,  for  fine  gold 
adheres  so  closely  to  a  rough  board  that  it  is  almost  im- 
possible to  sweep  it  off.  The  best  thing  to  sweep  the 
box  with  is  a  brush  made  of  split  bamboo  or  cane,  that 
may  be  purchased  in  the  mining  towns. 

In  many  cases  there  is  deposited  behind  the  riffles 
a  fine  black  sand,  which  is  magnetic  iron  ore.  In  order 
to  separate  the  gold  from  this  a  small  quantity  of  quick- 
silver is  placed  behind  the  cleats.  The  quicksilver  is 
useful  also  in  holding  many  particles  of  "  flour  gold  "  so 
inmute  that  otherwise  they  might  be  lost.  The  sluice- 
box  was  for  a  long  time  by  far  the  most  important  con- 
trivance in  placer  mining,  and  is  still  in  common  use, 
though  here  and  there  money  and  brains  have  combined 
to  bring  about  more  satisfactory  methods.  Even  where 
the  latter  have  been  adopted  the  sluice-box  is  called 
into  service  to  work  over  the  "  tailings  "  of  previous 
operations,  that  name  being  applied  to  dirt  that  has  once 
been  worked  and  deposited  by  the  water  after  leaving 
the  *'tail  end"  of  a  sluice,  rocker,  flume,  etc.  Sluices, 
often  called  flumes,  are  sometimes  several  hundred,  and 
even  thousand,  feet  in  length.  Often  it  is  necessary  to 
elevate  the  dirt  in  what  are  known  as  "  dry  diggings,"  or 
to  carry  it  to  some  distance  to  a  point  where  water 


HYDRAULIC  OPERATIONS. 


131 


can  be  used  to  advantage,  and  various  devices  are 
adopted,  the  m(  t  common  being  large  buckets  swung 
upon  cranes.  In  some  places  where  hydraulic  mining  is 
not  practicable,  "drifting"  is  resorted  to.  A  tunnel  is 
run  into  the  hill  and  "  drifts  "  are  run  from  it,  the  dirt 
being  brought  out  for  washing,  or  else  a  shaft  is  sunk 
and  the  dirt  sent  up  to  the  surface  in  buckets.  In  some 
places  long  series  of  sluice-boxes  may  be  found  con- 
taining thousands  of  feet  of  lumber. 

All  placer  mining  is  of  necessity  hydraulic,  since  water 
is  always  used  to  separate  the  gold  from  the  dirt.  But 
the  name  **  hydraulic  "  is  generally  used  to  designate  the 
method  of  washing  down  auriferous  banks  by  turning  on 
them  a  powerful  stream  of  water,  the  gold  being  caught 
m  long  flumes  or  ground  sluices,  through  which  the  muddy 
liquid  is  made  to  flow.  It  is  in  this  form  of  mining  that 
the  most  capital  is  invested  in  the  placer  operations. 

Ofte:.  the  flumes  and  tunnels  of  the  hydraulic  systems, 
which  sometimes  pass  through  hills  and  even  mountains, 
are  paved  with  stone,  instead  of  wood,  the  stone  catch- 
ing the  fine  gold  better  than  the  wooden  riffles.  Stone 
flumes  are  not  so  easily  robbed  by  sluice-box  thieves  as 
the  wooden  ones,  aiid  thus  operate  as  a  partial  protec- 
tion against  the  operations  of  midnight  miners.  The 
work  of  making  a  "  clean-up  "  by  taking  up  the  stone 
bottom,  removing  the  amalgam,  and  relaying  the  stones 
again,  takes  more  time,  but  the  wear  and  tear  on  long 
wooden  flumes  by  the  heavy  rocks  carried  through  them 
by  the  strong  current  is  an  oflset  to  this,  and  clean-ups 


I  '* 


i   I 


U      11 


132 


MACHINERY  USED. 


are  not  made  very  often,  in  some  mines  only  twice  a 
year.  The  hydraulic  system  ha«=  developed  through  a 
series  of  years,  beginning  in  1852,  in  Nevada  City,  Cal., 
when  a  miner  turned  a  small  canvas  hose  against  the 
bank  with  a  pressure  of  sixty  feet  of  water,  and  reaching 
a  point  where  water  is  forced  through  a  nozzle  ten  inches 
in  diameter  with  a  pressure  of  500  feet,  a  resistless  tor- 
rent thrown  upwards  of  300  feet.  Not  many  of  these 
powerful  streams  are  in  use,  a  nozzle  of  from  three  to 
six  inches  and  a  pressure  of  not  more  than  400  feet 
being  found  the  most  serviceable  and  economical.  The 
water  is  carried  down  into  the  mine  from  some  elevated 
point  in  huge  pipes  of  boiler  iron,  strongly  riveted  to 
resist  the  tremendous  pressure,  and  is  discha^oe* 
through  machines  known  as  "  monitors "  or  "  little 
giants."  The  machine  is  double-jointed  at  the  base, 
and  can  be  depressed  or  elevated  or  turned  to  either 
side  at  the  will  of  the  operator,  who  has  thus  perfect 
control  of  the  stream  discharged  from  it,  and  may  direct 
it  at  any  portion  of  the  bank  desired.  The  force  of  a 
column  of  water  400  feet  high,  compressed  from  an 
eighteen-inch  pipe  to  a  six-inch  orifice,  is  not  easy  to 
realize.  The  torrent  rushes  forth  with  a  roar,  and  hurls 
itself  in  an  almost  solid  mass  against  the  bank,  which 
melts  as  though  it  were  a  heap  of  snow.  A  discharge  of 
1,000  miners*  inches  of  water  is  not  unusual.  This  is 
equivalent  to  1,500  cubic  feet  per  minute,  or  7,000,000 
gallons  in  ten  hours.  At  the  estimated  average  this 
would  excavate  nearly  3,000  cubic  yards  of  earth. 


AN  ESSENTIAL  FEATURE. 


^33 


When  the  mine  is  not  so  situated  that  a  flume  can  be 
built  along  the  ground  with  a  proper  fall  for  the  "  tail- 
ings," it  becomes  necessary  to  tunnel  through  a  hill  for 
an  outlet.  Some  of  these  tunnels  are  necessarily  very 
long  and  expensive,  and  it  is  in  such  enterprises  that 
large  capital  is  required  in  hydraulic  mining.  The 
tunnel  is  paved  for  a  sluice,  and  often  a  long  flume 
extends  beyond  it  for  the  same  purpose.  Much  inge- 
nuity has  been  displayed  in  constructing  flumes  so  as  to 
save  as  much  of  the  fine  gold  passing  through  them  as 
possible,  and  yet  much  of  it  is  carried  away.  This  is 
shown  in  a  few  favorable  localities  by  persons  who  have 
constructed  flumes  in  the  beds  of  streams  into  which 
tailings  are  discharged,  by  which  they  take  profitable 
toll  for  letting  the  tailings  again  pass  over  hundreds  of 
feet  of  rififles.  ^ 

The  discharge  of  tailings  into  streams  flowing  into  the 
Sacramento  Valley  has  caused  much  trouble  in  Califor- 
nia, and  the  detritus,  debris^  or  "  slickins  "  has  filled  up 
the  beds  of  the  streams,  covered  the  fertile  bottom  lands 
with  a  sterile  deposit,  and  produced  more  frequent  floods 
and  overflow  of  low  lands.  In  Oregon  and  Washington 
bis  trouble  has  not  occurred,  since  the  topography  is 
ucch  that  the  tailings  from  hydraulic  mines  are  not  de- 
r  /sited  c  ^  agricultural  lands,  and  do  not  fill  up  the  beds 
of  streams  running  through  them. 

An  essential  feature  of  a  hydraulic  mine  is  a  water 
ditch  running  either  from  some  unfailing  stream  or 
natural  or  artificial   reservoir.     Some  of  these  ditches 


t 


I 
I  it 


*  I! 


:i 


mmm 


W,  i! 


■  Mm  ' 


134 


WATER  RIGHTS  DEnNED. 


are  many  miles  in  length,  and  are  carried  for  part  of  the 
distance  through  tunnels  or  across  gulches  in  high 
wooden  flumes.  Some  of  the  reservoirs  constructed  to 
supply  the  ditches  hold  nearly  a  billion  cubic  feet  o^ 
water.  The  construction  of  such  large  ditches  and  reser- 
voirs calls  for  the  investment  of  much  capital.  In  places 
these  ditches  are  constructed  by  companies  and  the  water 
sold  to  the  miners  using  it;  also  to  farmers  for  irrigating 
purposes  when  favorably  situated.  The  capacity  of 
mining  ditches  varies  from  500  to  lo.ocx)  inches  of  water. 
An  inch  varies  in  different  localities,  but  the  usual  stand- 
ard is  the  quantii  ^  vt  will  flow  in  twenty-four  hours 
through  an  aperture  ae  inch  square,  with  the  water  six 
inches  above  the  point  of  discharge.  This  equals  16,725 
gallons. 

The  courts  of  the  Pacific  Coast  have  firmly  established 
the  principle  of  absolute  property  in  water.  By  their 
decisions,  given  after  much  long  and  expensive  litigation, 
they  have  affirmed  the  principle  that  a  water  right  of  a 
definite  number  of  inches  may  be  located  on  any  stream 
where  prior  rights  do  not  exist,  and  that  the  quantity 
located  may  be  taken  out,  even  to  the  draining  of  the 
original  stream,  may  be  conveyed  away,  sold,  and  never 
returned  to  the  original  channel.  One  right  may  be 
located  above  another,  but  only  for  such  surplus  water 
as  was  not  located  by  the  prior  claim.  This  doctrine 
has  been  found  as  necessary  in  irrigating  districts  as  in 
mining  sections  It  is  a  complete  reversal  of  the  old 
common-law  doctrine  of  riparian  rights,  established  under 


sal  I  fl 


MODIFICATION  NECESSARY. 


135 


conditions  far  different  from  those  prevailing  on  the 
Pacific  Coast. 

Most  of  the  hydraulic  mines  are  worked  in  the  chan- 
nels of  an  extinct  system  of  rivers,  running  in  places  at 
right  angles  with  the  present  water-courses.  This  fact 
was  not  disclosed  for  many  years,  but  as  the  working 
progressed  it  was  seen  that  the  auriferous  gravel,  or 
cement,  occupied  well-defined  channels  running  tortu- 
ously along  in  the  usual  manner  of  water-courses.  The 
conclusion  has  been  reached  that  these  were  pre-glacial 
streams,  and  that  since  the  ages  in  which  they  accumu- 
lated their  present  store  of  gold  the  topographical  con- 
tour of  the  mountains  has  been  completely  changed  and 
the  present  water-courses  been  opened  up.  It  may  be 
said  that  these  ancient  channels  have  only  been  tapped 
here  and  there,  and  that  hundreds  of  miles  of  these 
auriferous  banks  yet  await  the  dissolving  touch  of  water. 

While  placer  mining  must  necessarily  be  conducted 
in  much  the  same  general  way  the  world  over,  the  con- 
ditions which  are  presented  in  the  Klondike  country 
make  some  modifications  necessary.  The  extreme  cold 
of  most  of  the  year  in  that  latitude  brings  with  it  obsta- 
cles which  are  hard  to  overcome.  Man  will  overcome 
them,  because  he  knows  that  gold  is  there,  and  because 
he  wants  it,  but  at  present  he  overcomes  them  slowly 
and  laboriously.  His  reward  is  great  enough,  however, 
in  many  cases  to  make  him  forget  the  hardships. 

In  addition  to  the  dangers  to  health  the  great  difficulty 
that  the  miner  has  to  contend  with  is  the  fact  that  the 


!  i 


;i 


J! 


136 


VALUE  OF  EXPLOSIVES. 


ground  is  frozen  solid  nearly  all  the  year,  and  even  in 
summer  thaws  only  a  few  inches.  This  makes  it  neces- 
sary to  thaw  the  ground  artificially,  and  this  is  done  by 
"burning."  Fires  are  built  on  the  surface  and  the 
ground  is  thawed  a  few  inches  beneath  the  surface.  This 
is  then  dug  out;  another  fire  is  built  in  the  hole,  and  this 
process  is  continued  until  bedrock  is  reached.  Then 
fires  are  built  against  the  side  of  the  shaft,  and  drifts 
and  tunnels  are  thawed  out.  All  the  dirt  thus  taken 
out  is  piled  outside  until  the  stream  opens  in  the  spring. 
Then  the  sluice-boxes  are  set  up  and  the  winter's  dig- 
gings washed  out.  Thus  a  miner  is  enabled  to  keep 
busy  about  all  the  year.  - 

This  method  of  burning  out  a  shaft  and  tunnels  is  by 
no  means  nev/,  for  it  has  been  carried  on  for  many  years 
in  the  basins  of  the  Amoor  and  Lena  Rivers  in  Siberia, 
where  the  conditions  are  very  similar  to  those  in  the 
Klondike  region.  Placer  mining  in  Alaska  really  differs 
from  placer  mining  in  warmer  climates  only  in  that  the  dirt 
has  to  be  thawed  ont,  and  that  water  for  washing  can  be 
obtained  there  only  a  month  or  two  in  each  year.  And 
even  when  bedrock  is  reached  it  is  in  many  cases  filled 
with  cracks  and  seams  which  are  rich  in  gold  and  well 
worth  the  digging  out.  As  to  the  value  of  explosives  in  this 
frozen  soil  authorities  differ.  The  Mining  and  Scientific 
Press  said  recently  that  they  can  be  used  effectively, 
while  the  Mining  and  Engineering  yournal,  in  speaking 
of  the  Siberian  mines,  where  the  conditions  are  similar, 
says  their  effect  is  simply  to  mat  the  ground  together 


! 


WEALTH  UNTOUCHED. 


^Z7 


harder.  For  this  same  reason,  says  the  latter  journal, 
the  ground  cannot  be  dug  with  a  pick  and  shovel  until 
thawed  out.  As  is  almost  invariably  the  case  in  cold  cli- 
mates accidents  have  been  somewhat  frequent  in  Alaska 
in  the  use  of  explosives.  The  sticks  of  dynamite  which 
the  miner  uses  in  hi3  work  freeze  easily,  and  in  thawing 
them  out,  great  car??  must  be  used.  They  are  often 
placed  in  a  pan  near  the  fire  or  in  the  ovens  of  the  crude 
stoves  used  by  the  miners.  Carelessness,  in  a  number 
of  instances,  has  led  to  their  explosion. 

Scientific  men  in  the  United  States  and  abroad 
were  by  no  means  surprised  when  the  stories  of 
great  gold  finds  first  came  out  of  Alaska.  For  years 
geologists,  mineralogists  and  mining  experts  have  been 
studying  Alaska  and  making  frequent  trips  both  along 
its  fringed  coast  and  far  into  the  interior.  The  discover- 
ies they  have  made — geological,  mineralogical  and 
geographical — have  all  pointed  toward  the  eventual  lay- 
ing bare  of  rich  mineral  deposits.  It  is  now  the  consen- 
sus of  belief  among  these  men  that  the  discoveries  have 
only  begun,  that  the  wedge  has  only  entered. 

Professor  S.  F.  Emmons,  of  the  United  States  Geolog- 
ical Survey,  recently  said : — 

"The  real  mass  of  golden  wealth  in  Alaska  remains 
as  yet  untouched.  It  lies  in  the  virgin  rocks,  from  which 
the  particles  found  in  the  river  gravels  now  being  washed 
by  the  Klondike  miners  have  been  torn  by  the  erosion 
of  streams.  These  particles,  being  heavy,  have  been 
deposited  by  the  streams  which  carried  the  lighter  matter 
onward  to  the  ocean,  thus  forming,  by  gradual  accumula- 


m 


.'.,'St 

m 


ii 


m 


M 


\     i 


138 


GOLD-BEARING  GRAVEL. 


m 


i„;i',.  -;: 


ii|i! 


i      i|! 


tion,  a  sort  of  auriferous  concentrate.  Many  of  the  bits, 
especially  in  certain  localities,  are  big  enough  to  be  called 
nuggets. 

MONEY   PICKED   OUT  OF   THE    DIRT. 

"  In  spots  the  gravels  are  so  rich  that,  as  we  have  all 
heard,  many  ounces  of  the  yellow  metal  are  obtained 
from  the  washing  of  a  single  panful.  That  is  what  is 
making  the  people  so  wild — the  prospect  of  picking 
money  out  of  the  dirt  by  the  handful  literally.     -* 

"  But  all  this  is  merely  the  skimming  of  grease  from  the 
pot ;  the  soup  remains,  and  precious  rich  soup  it  is.  The 
bulk  of  the  wealth  is  in  the  rocks  of  the  hills,  waiting 
only  for  proper  machinery  to  take  it  out.  For  you  must 
remember  that  the  gold  was  originally  stored  in  veins  of 
the  rocks,  which  are  of  an  exceedingly  ancient  formation. 
Nobody  can  say  how  many  millions  of  years  ago  the 
metal  was  put  there,  but  it  must  have  been  an  enormous- 
ly  long  time  back.  .. 

"  The  streams  wore  away  the  rocks,  carrying  gold  with 
them,  and  this  process  continued  for  ages,  making  im- 
mense deposits  of  rich,  gold-bearing  gravels.  Eventually 
these  deposits  were  themselves  transformed  into  rock — 
a  sort  of  conglomerate  in  which  pebbles,  small  and  big, 
are  mixed  with  what  was  once  sand.  To-day  the  strata 
composed  of  this  conglomerate  are  of  immense  extent 
and  unknown  thickness.  The  formation  closely  resem- 
bles that  of  the  auriferous  '  banket  *  or  pudding  stone  of 
the  South  African  gold  fields ;  but  the  South  African 
pudding  stone  was  in  far  remote  antiquity  a  sea  beach, 
whereas  the  Alaskan  formation  is  a  deposit  made  by 
streams,  as  I  have  said. 


ONLY  THE  FIRST  BITE.  ,  ^^ 

"In  a  later  epoch  the  stream  continued  to  gnaw  away 
at  the  hills,  bringing  down  more  gold  and  leaving  it  be- 
hind in  the  gravels  of  their  bottoms.  It  is  these  com- 
paratively modern  rivers  which  are  responsible  for  the 
pay  dirt  of  the  Klondike  district  and  of  all  that  region. 
Naturally,  because  it  was  easily  got  at  and  worked,  the 
miners  have  struck  this  surface  alluvium  first.  The 
streams  at  various  times  have  followed  different  courses, 
and  it  is  in  the  gravels  of  the  dry  and  disused  channels 
that  the  gold  miners  dig  with  such  fabulous  profit. 

A   GOLDEN   FEAST. 

"You  will  observe  from  what  I  have  said  that  the  gold 
of  that  region  exists  under  three  widely  different  condi- 
tions— in  the  gravels,  in  the  conglomerate  or  pudding 
stone  and  in  the  ancient  rocks  of  the  hills.  When  the 
modern  stream  deposits,  now  being  worked,  are  used  up, 
the  miner  can  tackle  the  conglomerate,  which  represents 
the  gravels  of  ages  ago.  Finally,  when  they  are  pro' 
vided  with  the  requisite  machinery,  they  will  be  in  a  po- 
sition to  attack  the  masses  of  yellow  wealth  that  are 
stored  in  the  veins  of  the  mountains.  At  present  we 
can  hardly  consider  that  the  first  bite  has  been  taken  of 
the  golden  feast  which  Alaska  offers  to  hungry  man." 

Last  summer  the  government  sent  a  commission  of 
men  from  the  Geological  Survey  into  Alaska.  At  the 
head  of  this  party  was  Josiah  Edward  Spurr.  He  has 
recendy  made  his  report.  He  says,  as  to  the  Forty 
Mile  district,  that,  in  the  latter  part  of  1887,  Franklin 
Gulch  was  struck,  and  the  first  year  the  creek  is  esd. 


':; 


11 


I. 


':      liJI 


140 


OUTPUT  OF  THE  MINES. 


mated  to  have  produced  $4,000.  Ever  since  it  has  been 
a  constant  payer.  The  character  of  the  gold  there  is 
nuggety,  masses  of  $$  weight  being  very  common.  The 
yield  the  first  year  after  the  discovery  of  Forty  Mile  has 
been  variously  estimated  at  from  $75,000  to  5(^150,000, 
but  $60,000  probably  covers  the  production. 

The  discovery  of  Davis  Creek  and  a  stampede  from 
Franklin  Gulch  followed  in  the  spring  of  1888.  In  1891, 
gold  mining  in  the  interior,  as  well  as  on  the  coast,  at 
Silver  Bow  basin  and  Treadwell,  received  a  great  im- 
petus. The  event  of  1892  was  the  discovery  of  Miller 
Creek.  In  the  spring  of  1893  many  new  claims  were 
staked,  and  it  is  estimated  that  eighty  men  took  out 
$100,000.  Since  then  Miller  Creek  has  been  the  heav- 
iest producer  of  the  Forty  Mile  district,  and,  until 
recently,  of  the  whole  Yukon.  Its  entire  length  lies  in 
British  possessions. 

The  output  for  1893,  as  given  by  the  mint  director  for 
the  Alaskan  creeks,  all  but  Miller  Creek  being  in  Ameri- 
can possessions,  was  $198,000,  with  a  mining  population 
of  196.  The  total  amount  produced  by  the  Yukon 
placers,  in  1894,  was  double  that  of  the  previous  year, 
and  was  divided  between  the  two  districts.  In  1895,  the 
output  had  doubled  again. 

Forty  Mile  district,  in  the  summer  of  1 896,  is  described 
in  the  report  as  looking  as  if  it  had  seen  its  best  days, 
and,'unless  several  new  creeks  are  discovered,  he  pre- 
dicts that  it  will  lose  its  old  position. 

The  Birch  Creek  district  was,  last  summer,  in  a  flour- 
ishing condition.     Most  of  the  gulches  were  then  run- 


STAMPEDE  TO  THE  KLONDIKE. 


141 


ning,  miners  were  working  on  double  shifts,  night  and 
day,  and  many  large  profits  were  reported.  On  Masta- 
don  Creek,  the  best  producer,  over  300  miners  were  at 
work,  many  expecting  to  winter  in  the  gulch. 

As  to  hydraulic  mining,  the  report  says : 

••Some  miners  have  planned  to  work  this  and  other 
good  ground  supposed  to  exist  under  the  deep  covering 
of  moss  and  gravel  in  the  wide  valley  of  the  Mammoth 
and  Crooked  Creeks,  by  hydraulicking,  the  water  to  be 
obtained  by  tapping  Miller  and  Mastadon  Creeks  near 
the  head.  It  will  be  several  years  before  the  scheme 
can  be  operated,  because  both  of  the  present  gulches 
are  paying  well  and  will  continue  to  do  so  at  least  five 
years." 

••  With  the  announcement  of  gold  in  the  winter  of 
1896-97,"  says  the  report  on  the  Klondike  district, ''there 
was  a  genuine  stampede  to  the  new  region.  Forty  Mile 
was  almost  deserted.  But  350  men  spent  the  winter  on 
Klondike,  in  the  gulches  and  at  the  new  tov/n  of  Daw- 
son. The  more  important  parts  of  the  district  are  on 
Bonanza  and  Hunker  Creeks.  There  is  plenty  of  room 
for  many  more  prospectors  and  miners,  for  the  gulches 
and  creeks,  which  have  shown  good  prospects,  are 
spread  over  an  area  of  seven  hundred  square  miles. 

ALASKAN    GOLD   PRODUCTION   FOR    1 896.      ' 

"The  estimated  Alaskan  gold  ^j  -oduction  for  1896, 
made  by  the  Spurr  report,  is  $1,400,000.  The  report 
points  out  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  speedy  develop- 
ment of  the  country.     First,  the  climate,  with  its  short 


i 


^'\ 


i,'f 


? 

r 


it 


r!    I 


1 1«"* 


',■  X' 


,         1 


IA2  FUTURE  OF  ALASKA. 

summer  season  and  long,  cold  winter.  Prospecting  is 
done  in  the  winter  more  and  more  every  winter  because 
frozen  ground  renders  traveling  over  the  swampy,  moss- 
covered  country  more  easy,  and  the  miner  is  thus  able  to 
begin  work  with  the  first  spring  thaw. 

LABOR  AT   A   PREMIUM. 

"  Whatever  Alaska  may  be  in  the  future,  it  is  not  now 
self-supporting  agriculturally.  Moose,  caribou  and  hare 
are  variable  in  quantity,  abundant  one  time  and  disap- 
pearing from  the  region  for  twelve  months  at  a  time. 
Ten  dollars  a  day  is  the  general  wage  paid,  twelve  dollars 
for  a  day  of  ten  hours  being  paid  in  some  of  the  more  re- 
mote gulches.  In  winter  the  pay  for  labor  is  from  five  to 
eight  dollars  per  day  of  six  hours.  Many  times  the  miners 
have  been  at  the  point  of  starvation,  and  there  has 
hardly  been  a  winter  when  they  have  not  been  p"t  on  a 
ration  basis.  Universal  suffrage  is  given,  and  have 
an  equal  vote.  Penalties  include :  For  stealing,  banish- 
ment from  the  country,  in  some  cases  also  whipping ; 
threatening  with  weapons,  the  same ;  murders,  hanging ; 
but  there  have  been  no  murders  so  far." 


'  IS 

ise 

►ss- 

to 


ow 
ire 
ip- 
ne. 

ars 
re- 
ito 
ers 
las 
1  a 
ive 


CHAPTER  VII. 

ALASKAN   QUAixTZ    MINES   AND   MINING. 

The  location  of  gold  deposits  on  the  coast  of  the  southeast — The  Great  Treadwell 
Mine  on  Douglass  Island — The  largest  quartz  mill  in  the  world — Tbousands  of 
dollars  a  day  from  low-grade  ores — Other  mines  of  the  section — The  quaxtz  veins 
of  the  Klonkike  country — Large  amounts  of  capital  being  gathered  to  work 
them — The  rich  promise  of  the  future — The  rules  which  the  probjjector  must 
follow  in  his  search  for  hidden  treasure — Methods  employed  in  working  the 
golden  veins — Processes  of  the  rock-breaker,  stamp-mill,  and  concentrator. 

THE  progress  made  in  the  location  of  gold  deposits 
on  the  southeastern  coast  constitutes  a  separate 
chapter  in  Alaskan  mining  history.  It  is  recorded 
that  Doroshin,  in  1848,  made  small  finds  of  gold  near  the 
present  site  of  Fort  Kenai,  on  the  Kakni  River,  on  the 
Kenai  Peninsula,  far  to  the  westward  of  Juneau.  A  few 
years  later  he  continued  his  prospecting  in  these  re- 
gions, but  meeting  with  indifferent  success  and  encoun- 
tering the  opposition  of  the  Russian-American  Com- 
pany, which  at  that  time  controlled  the  country,  he 
abandoned  the  work.  Tradition  has  it  that  even  before 
the  days  of  Doroshin  an  emissary  of  the  Russian  Gov- 
ernme.  t  found  gold  on  the  northern  end  of  Baronov 
Island,  upon  which  Sitka  is  situated.  Pressure  was 
brought  to  bear  upon  him  I  /  the  then  all-powerful 
trading  company,  and  his  su'  cess  was  never  brought  to 
light.  It  was  the  constant  policy  of  the  Russian- 
American  Company  to  keep  out  the  white  man,  as  it 


':  I 


* 


•    ■ 


I  . 


ii 


r 


146 


THE  TREADWELL  MINE. 


Ml 


m. 


re 


I  m 


was  feared  that  the  development  of  the  natural  re- 
sources of  the  country  would  in  time  have  a  depressing 
influence  upon  the  trade  in  furs,  skins,  etc.,  upon  which 
the  company  depended.  This  same  policy  was  pursued 
by  the  other  companies  trading  in  these  parts. 

The  next  find  in  southeast  Alaska  was  in  the  imme- 
diate vicinity  of  Sitka,  in  the  year  1873.  This  caused 
the  first  interest  to  be  taken  in  prospecting  in  Alaska. 
Miners  from  British  Columbia  crossed  the  border  in 
great  numbers,  and  in  1880  the  yellow  metal  was 
brought  to  light  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  Juneau. 
In  fact,  Joseph  Juneau,  after  whom  the  village  was 
named,  was  the  first  man  to  show  that  gold  occurred 
in  Alaska  in  any  considerable  quantities.  After  the  dis- 
covery of  gold  in  the  clifTs  above  Juneau,  came  the  loca- 
tion of  the  great  Treadwell  claim  on  Douglass  Island, 
about  two  miles  from  Juneau  and  beyond  Gastineau 
Channel.  It  was  in  1 88 1  that  miners  first  set  foot  in  this 
region.  The  island  itself  was  named  by  Vancouver  for 
his  friend,  the  Bishop  of  Salisbury.  Among  the  early 
claims  were  two  owned  in  partnership  by  men  named 
Bean  and  Matthews.  They  became  indebted  to  John 
Treadwell,  a  San  Francisco  builder,  for  a  loan  of  $150, 
and  put  up  their  rights  on  Douglass  Island  as  security. 
Failing  to  make  payment,  the  property  passed  into  the 
hands  of  John  Treadwell.  He  was  not  any  too  well 
pleased  with  his  bargain,  but  soon  became  convinced 
that  the  land  could  be  worked  for  its  gold  with  profit. 
He  bought  out  a  neighboring  claim  held  by  a  character 


Hf] 


ONE  MILLION  DOLLARS. 


147 


well  known  about  Juneau,  who  rejoiced  in  the  sobriquet 
of  "  French  Pete."  The  latter  received  $300.  Tread- 
well  associated  with  himself  four  other  men,  among  them 
Senator  John  P.  Jones,  of  Nevada,  and  active  work  was 
begun  on  the  development  of  the  property. 

Mr.  Treadwell  stood  on  the  ground  which  afterward 
became  the  site  of  one  of  the  most  remarkable  quartz 
operations  in  the  world,  and  fought  the  squatters  who 
insisted  on  washing  the  surface  for  gold  until  the  organic 
act  secured  his  title.  Since  then  Ji  1,000,000  have  been 
expended  on  the  works.  Many  thousands  were  spent 
in  constructing  a  ditch  eighteen  miles  long  to  bring  the 
necessary  water  to  the  ground,  and  over  ^300,000  was 
involved  in  various  experiments  in  improving  the  chlor- 
ination  process.  The  great  mill  of  240  stamps  remains 
now  the  largest  of  its  kind  in  the  world,  and  has  never 
stopped,  night  or  day,  save  for  repairs,  since  it  was 
started.  Six  hundred  tons  of  ore  are  milled  every  day, 
at  an  average  profit  of  ^4.  each,  so  that  it  can  be  seen 
that  many  good-sized  fortunes  have  passed  into  the 
pockets  of  its  fortunate  owntis.  The  ore  is  quarrieH  in 
three  large  open  pits,  and,  falling  th-nce  through  ore- 
shoots  to  cars  in  three  tunnels  below,  is  ^^oved  1  y  gravity 
through  each  process.  The  heavy  smoke  from  the  Tread- 
well  chlorination  works  has  killed  vegetation  for  a  mile 
up  and  down  the  island. 

While  the  ore  from  the  Treadwell  is  of  such  a  lo^v  grade 
that  in  most  places  with  the  ordinary  proces  it  would 
not  be  worked  at  all,  it  is  present  in  such  quantities  that 


Hi 


M      L 


^1 

s 

1  I 


l.'i 


•(  '■ 


iffi 


J:i! 


i!       :      I 


148 


BEAR'S  NEST  MINE. 


many  years  must  elapse  before  the  stream  of  riches 
ceases  to  flow  from  this  one  property.  The  experience 
gained  from  the  Treadwell  property  in  working  these 
low-grade  ores  will  in  time  be  of  inestimable  value  to 
other  operators  in  similar  fields. 

The  Mexican  mine  adjoining  the  Treadwell  on  the  east 
is  owned  by  the  same  company.  Here  60  stamps  are  at 
work.     In  the  two  properties  1 75  men  are  employed. 

Another  important  mine  of  that  locality  is  the  Bear's 
Nest,  which,  owing  to  disagreements  among  its  English 
and  German  owners,  is  not  being  worked  at  present. 
The  promise  of  its  future  built  up  the  neighboring  town 
of  Douglass  City. 

Many  mining  experts  who  have  examined  the  enor- 
mous gold  deposit  on  Douglass  Island  think  it  is  a  freak, 
a  chimney  of  quartz  which  is  not  paralleled  elsewhere  on 
the  island.  But  the  most  experienced  engineers  confess 
themselves  puzzled  by  the  geological  formation  of 
Alaska.  It  seems  to  be  unlike  any  other.  The  general 
formation  is  slate,  which,  with  granite,  holds  the  quartz 
veins,  but  the  latter  are  often  broken  and  confused.  Dr. 
George  M.  Dawson  says  in  a  paper  on  the  subject:  "  It 
presents  none  of  the  characteristics  of  an  ordinary  lode 
or  vein,  being  without  any  parallel  or  arrangement  of  its 
constituents  and  showing  no  such  coarse  crystalline 
structure  as  a  lode  of  large  dimensions  might  be  ex- 
pected to  exhibit." 

Miners*  wages  in  these  mines  are  not  large,  Indians 
getting  f2  and  white  men  $^  per  day. 


SILVER  BOW  BASIN. 


149 


Sixty  miles  north  of  Juneau  on  Berners  Bay  are  the 
works  of  the  Berners  Bay  Mining  &  Milling  Company, 
which  is  operating  the  Comet  mine  at  Seward  City.  This 
mine,  which  is  owned  by  a  syndicate  including  several 
members  of  the  Rothschild  family  and  Mr.  D.  O.  Mills, 
produced  $2,500,000  in  1896. 

Some  operations  have  been  carried  on  in  the  valley  of 
the  Stickine  River,  several  hundred  miles  below  Juneau. 
As  early  as  1861  gold  was  discovered  there,  and  by  1874 
several  thousand  miners  were  at  work.  It  was  esti- 
mated that  the  yield  from  the  placer  mines  that  year  was 
more  than  a  million  dollars.  Later,  when  the  placer 
claims  seemed  exhausted,  and  expensive  machinery  was 
needed  to  operate  in  the  quartz,  many  of  the  miners 
disappeared,  and  only  a  few  are  at  work  there  now. 

In  the  Silver  Bow  Basin,  at  the  head  of  Gold  Creek, 
and  near  Juneau,  extensive  mining  operations  are  being 
carried  on.  The  deep  bowl  here  has  long  received  the 
washings  from  the  great  mountain  walls  which  sur- 
round it,  and  thousands  of  dollars  were  taken  from  the 
placer  grounds  annually,  until  they  were  worked  as  low 
as  the  water  system  would  permit.  Since  then  the 
Silver  Bow  Basin  Mining  Company  has  bought  many  of 
the  claims,  as  well  as  quartz  claims,  in  the  mountains 
around,  and  running  a  tunnel  three  thousand  feet  in 
length  in  from  Charlotte  Basin  below,  has  succeeded  in 
keeping  a  big  stamp-mill  busy  with  the  ore  obtained. 
A  number  of  other  companies  are  also  engaged  in 
similar  enterprises. 


fi 


H. 


11 


>t  ■  -I 
>i  - 


111 


i  ^^  I 


150 


QUARTZ  VEINS  UNTOUCHED. 


These  are  some  of  the  more  important  of  the  gold 
discoveries  in  the  southeastern  coast  section,  but  the 
yellow  metal  has  been  found  in  varying  quantities  at  a 
large  number  of  other  points,  and  lies  hidden  in  many 
places  where  man  has  never  sought  it.  In  a  number  of 
places  not  specially  mentioned  it  is  even  now  being 
mined  at  a  large  profit. 

The  quartz  veins  of  the  newly-discovered  gold  coun- 
try have  as  yet  been  almost  untouched.  The  location 
of  a  few  are  already  known,  and,  judging  from  the  rich 
deposits  of  the  placer  grounds,  many  more  will  in  the 
course  of  time  be  discovered.  Just  at  present  the  trans- 
portation facilities  do  not  admit  of  the  carrying  in  of 
necessary  implements  and  machinery  for  the  quartz  pro- 
cesses, but  undoubtedly,  the  near  future  will  see  these 
difficulties  overcome.  Man  has  the  habit  of  securing 
gold  in  some  way  when  once  his  eyes  are  fastened  on  it. 
Already  there  is  a  long  list  of  companies  which  have 
been  formed,  representing  immense  sums  in  capital  from 
all  over  the  world,  to  work  in  the  new  fields.  Some  of 
them  no  doubt  for  the  time  being  will  confine  them- 
selves to  placer  ground,  but  few  of  them  will  be  satisfied 
to  stop  short  of  the  big  quartz  lodes  which  are  known  to 
exist.  Some  of  the  more  important  of  these  companies 
and  their  capital  are  as  follows : — Cudahy-Healy  Yukon 
&  Klondike  Mining  Co.,  $25,000,000;  Boe  &  Barnes, 
1^950,000 ;  Alaska  Syndicate  Co.,  «f 400,000 ;  Acme  De- 
velopment Co.,  $150,000;  Alaska  Co-operative  Co., 
jJioOiOQo;  Yukon-Cariboo  Co.,  $5,000,000;  New  York 


MINING  COMPANIES. 


151 


&  Alaska  Gold  Exploration  Co.,  $1,000,000;  Norse- 
American  Gold  Co.,  $750,000;  Alaska  Klondike  Co., 
f 600,000;  Gold  Syndicate,  $5,000,000;  Kootenay- 
Cariboo  Co.  (Ltd.),  $2,500,000;  Exploration  Syndicate, 
$100,000;  Philadelphia  &  Alaska  Gold  Mining  Syn- 
dicate, $500,000;  Alaska  Co-operative  Develop- 
ment Co.,  $200,000;  Northwest  Mining  &  Trading 
Co.,  $5,000,000. 

In  nearly  every  city  of  any  size  throughout  the  land 
companies  are  being  formed.  Colorado  Springs  has  the 
Alaska-Klondike  Company,  with  a  million-dollar  capital, 
and  William  P.  Bonbright  as  president.  Columbus,  O., 
reports  a  $500,000  company,  with  a  West  Virginia  char- 
ter ;  this  company  will  charter  several  ships,  load  them 
at  Montreal  with  goods  and  machinery  likely  to  be 
needed  in  the  Alaska  gold  fields,  thus  escaping  customs 
duty,  and  sail  around  the  Horn  with  them.  They  will 
also  engage  in  mining,  but  trading  is  the  principal  object. 
Seattle  reports  that  $1,000,000  has  been  invested  in  in- 
corporated companies,  with  ever  so  much  more  in  irregu- 
larly organized  concerns.  Victoria,  B.  C,  reports  that  it 
has  been  in  the  Klondike  business  for  a  long  time.  At 
the  last  session  of  the  British  Columbia  Legislature  four 
companies  were  chartered  and  liberal  grants  of  land 
secured  from  the  unsuspecting  legislators.  In  other 
places  the  story  is  the  same.  Money  that  has  been  tied 
up  with  studious  care  during  the  hard  times  is  feeing  put 
freely  forth  to  snare  the  treasures  of  Alaska. 

There  can  be  no  settled  rules  laid  down  for  the  pros- 


•■  > 


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152 


MECHANICAL  ACCIDENTS. 


pector  in  seach  of  gold  veins.  Conditions  are  different 
in  each  new  section  discovered.  The  best-known  laws 
of  the  geological  world  have  their  exceptions,  but  there 
are  some  general  principles  which  the  seeker  for  gold- 
bearing  rock  will  do  well  to  study. 

In  every  quartz  mining  region  there  are  fissure  sys- 
tems which  are  more  or  less  regular,  much  depending 
upon  the  kinds  of  rock  in  which  they  are  formed.  The 
miner  or  prospector  soon  finds  that  very  important  rela- 
tions exist  between  dikes  and  other  bodies  of  igneous 
rock  and  ore  deposits.  Whatever  the  nature  of  the 
stratified  rocks,  sections  of  the  country  where  no  bodies  of 
eruptive  rocks  are  found  are  but  poor  in  minerals.  This 
is  on  account  of  the  dikes  opening  a  passage  during  the 
process  of  their  upheaval  from  those  deep-seated  regions 
whence  rise  mineral-charged  vapors  and  emanations  from 
metals  in  fiery  depths,  therefore  the  part  they  play  in  lode 
formation  is  more  mechanical  than  chemical.  They  merely 
open  a  passage  upward  from  nature's  secret  laboratory,  in 
unknown  and  unknowable  subterranean  depths. 

The  fissures  in  which  the  mineralized  veins  are  formed 
are  what  might  be  termed  mechanical  accidents,  as  they 
owe  their  existence  to  the  yielding  of  the  superincum- 
bent country  rock  at  the  point  of  least  resistance  at  the 
time  of  the  upheaval.  The  fissures  thus  formed,  the 
process  of  filling  commences,  some  doubtless  affording  a 
better  and  more  free  passage  than  others  to  the  ascend- 
ing mineral-charged  vapors. 

The  veins   spoken  of  by  miners  as  being  "  contact 


SECONDARY  FISSURES. 


153 


veins"  are  usually  such  as  are  in  contact  with  some  in- 
truded rock  on  the  surface,  being  situated  at  the  junction 
of  stratified  rocks  with  those  of  igneous  origin,  either  in 
the  shape  of  mountain  masses  or  as  narrow  dikes.  Other 
veins  are  at  the  surface  in  slate  or  other  stratified  rock, 
with  no  igneous  rocks  visible  in  the  immediate  vicinity. 
The  lodes  found  so  situated  would  not  be  spoken  of  by 
a  miner  as  "  contact  veins,"  as  they  have  the  same  rock 
for  both  walls.  At  a  lower  depth  below  the  sedimentary 
rock  granite,  diorite,  or  some  other  igneous  rock,  will 
be  reached,  when  the  lode  will  be  found  to  be  a  contact 
vein  lying  between  the  intruded  igneous  rock  and  the 
superincumbent  stratified  rock.  Thus  it  will  be  seen 
that  all  lodes  are  doubtless  contact  veins  at  some  point 
below  the  surface,  but  in  most  cases  at  a  greater  depth 
than  is  likely  to  be  attained  by  the  miner.  Were  the 
overlying  sedimentary  rock  suflficiently  tough  and  yield- 
ing to  bear  the  strain  of  upheaval  without  cracking 
there  would  be  no  veins  thus  formed  except  contact 
veins,  as  all  would  lie  between  the  uplifted  stratified  rock 
and  the  intruded  igneous  dike. 

The  secondary  fissures  are  the  result  of  fractures  pro- 
duced in  the  stratified  rocks  while  they  are  being  lifted 
during  the  elevation  of  mountain  masses  of  granite,  or 
the  upheaval  of  dikes  of  other  igneous  rocks,  and  they 
have  both  walls  of  the  same  kind  of  rock.  The  real 
contact  fissures  would  be  found  above,  at  the  point  where 
the  stratified  rock  abuts  upon  the  intruded  igneous  rock. 
This  contact  fissure  might  be  very  small,  merely  a  part- 


:    ( 


?!] 


1 1 


r.  i 


154 


TRUE  FISSURE  VEIN. 


r  ! 


ing  between  the  two  kinds  of  rock,  filled  with  crushed 
material  from  the  walls,  while  below,  in  the  overlying 
stratified  rock,  would  be  found  very  much  larger  fissures, 
and  in  some  one  of  them — that  having  the  best  open- 
ings and  most  favorable  situation — would  be  found  the 
principal  lode  formation.  In  the  other  parallel  fissures 
would  be  found  other  veins,  all  exhibiting  the  character- 
istics of  the  principal  lode. 

The  regularity  and  smoothness  of  the  fissures  depend 
much  upon  the  character  of  the  country  rock.  If  the 
overlying  rocks  do  not  cleave  well  and  regularly  the 
lodes  found  in  them  will  be  bunchy,  as  when  bodies  of 
serpentine  lie  in  the  line  of  the  fissures.  Fissures  are 
generally  very  much  more  jagged  and  irregular  on  the 
cross  sections  of  slate  or  slaty  rocks  than  those  that  run 
parallel  to  the  cleavage,  and  as  the  fissures  are  so  are 
the  lodes  with  which  they  are  filled.  The  broader  veins 
are  so  much  the  more  regular  is  their  course.  The 
broadest  veins  are  usually  the  longest.  The  greater  the 
length  of  a  vein  the  greater  the  depth  to  which  it  will 
probably  extend. 

A  "  true  fissure "  vein  is  one  which  traverses  the 
country  rock  independently  of  its  stratification,  cutting 
through  slaty  rocks  across  the  course  of  their  cleavage. 
These  veins  sometimes  cut  across  dikes  of  intruded 
igneous  rocks.  They  are  supposed  to  have  been  pro- 
duced by  deep-seated  plutonic  forces,  while  contact  veins 
and  their  accompanying  groups  of  parallel  veins  are  the 
result  of  forces  acting  nearer  the  surface. 


"CHIMNEYS"  OR  "SHOOTS." 


155 


There  are  contact  veins  which  lie  between  two  kinds 
of  igneous  rocks.  A  dike  of  diorite  may  be  upheaved 
in  such  a  position  as  to  form  a  contact  with  granite,  or 
with  an  older  dike  of  diorite  or  other  intruded  rock.  In 
places  where  there  are  parallel  groups  of  veins,  as  on 
the  "  mother  lode,"  a  diorite  dike  often  forms  the  foot 
wall  of  one  vein  and  the  hanging  wall  of  another.  The 
black  slate  of  that  great  mineral  belt  is  in  one  place  the 
hanging  and  in  another  the  foot  wall,  while  in  many 
places  it  forms  both  walls. 

If  the  gold  comes  from  any  of  the  wall  rocks  it  must 
be  at  a  great  depth,  where  there  is  intense  heat  and  great 
chemical  action — at  a  point  where  all  the  metals  are 
much  more  abundant  than  near  the  surface.  The 
nature  of  the  mineral  solutions  and  the  metallic  vapors 
filling  and  passing  up  through  the  fissures  have  more  to 
do  with  the  character  of  the  vein  formed  than  have  the 
wall  rocks. 

Mineral  veins  frequently  intersect  one  another.  When 
the  intersectinof  vein  fills  a  fissure  in  the  intersected  it 
shows  it  to  be  the  more  recent,  the  younger  of  the  two. 
Some  veins  are  intimately  combined  at  the  point  of 
junction,  showing  them  to  have  been  filled  at  the  same 
time.  As  a  rule,  the  work  of  filling  immediately  follows 
the  formation  of  the  fissure.  A  vein  intersected  by  a 
younger  vein  is  generally  rich,  as  it  receives  a  double 
charge  of  mineralized  solutions. 

"  Chimneys  "  or  "  shoots  "  of  ore  in  a  vein  are  prob- 
ably owing  to  a  considerable  extent  to  the  character  of 


eH 


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I 


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IS    > 


:  A 


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•I*   'i- 
11   t' 


■  I'!    -  ;'| 

mil' 


156 


SUCCESSION  OF  PINCHES. 


the  fissure  at  a  greater  depth.  Though  open  and 
roomy  near  the  top  the  fissure  may  be  narrow  or  wholly 
closed  at  a  deeper  level,  thus  permitting  the  metallic 
vapors  to  ascend  only  at  certain  points.  Thus  we  see 
steam  rises  in  columns  along  the  open  fissures  of  hot 
springs,  not  in  a  continuous  sheet.  Wide  places  in  a 
vein  are  more  favorable  to  ore  formation  than  narrow 
ones.  In  narrow  places  the  motion  of  the  ascending 
mineral-bearing  solution  or  vapors  is  more  rapid,  there- 
fore not  so  favorable  to  the  formation  of  deposits  as  the 
wider  places.  This  may  cause  the  apparent  "  pinching 
out "  of  a  vein.  At  such  places  no  sign  of  the  vein  vill 
be  seen  except  a  seam  of  clay,  but  if  this  is  followed  it 
is  apt  to  lead  to  a  broad  place  in  the  vein,  filled  with 
both  quartz  and  ore.  In  some  veins — owing  to  the 
irregular  fracture  of  the  rock  forming  the  walls — there 
are  found  a  succession  of  such  pinches. 

It  is  quite  certain  that  mineral  veins  have  been  ^lled 
by  circulation  in  the  fissures  in  which  they  are  found,  of 
heated  water,  aqueous  vapors,  and  various  gases,  all 
more  or  less  mineralized.  All  veins  have  not  been 
formed  in  the  same  way  nor  by  means  of  vapors  and 
emanations  of  the  same  character.  No  two  veins  are 
exactly  alike  in  all  respects.  Had  the  veins  been  filled 
by  means  of  molten  matter  from  below  (as  many  sup- 
pose) their  metallic  contents  would  have  been  the  same 
in  all  parts,  and  would  have  been  evenly  distributed. 
There  would  have  been  seen  no  "  bonanzas  "  or  •*  chim- 
neys "  of  rich  ore,  with  barren  spaces  between.   There  can 


nil 


THE  WORK  OF  AGES. 


157 


be  nothing  found  in  or  about  any  lode  which  shows  it  to 
be  the  result  of  a  quickly  completed  process.  On  the 
contrary,  all  goes  to  prove  that  the  formation  is  the  result 
of  a  long-continued  or  periodically  repeated  process, 
with  modifications  at  various  times  of  the  chemical  con- 
ditions, degrees  of  heat  and  pressure,  and  variations  in 
the  nature  of  the  mineral  solutions  or  metallic  vapors. 
Even  the  hydrostatic  pressure  in  a  column  of  minerals 
ill  solution  in  a  fissure  may  exert  a  great  influence  in  the 
disposition  of  ore.  What  might  not  be  affected  at  a 
depth  of  a  few  hundred  or  1 ,000  feet  might  be  accom- 
plished under  the  tremendous  pressure  of  5,000  feet. 
Doubtless  most  veins  were  formed  at  much  greater 
depth  than  we  now  see  them.  They  have  become  acces- 
sible to  us  through  the  upheaval  and  the  erosion  of  what 
lay  above  them. 

Lodes  will  more  commonly  be  found  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  plutonic  rocks — rocks  that  have  solidified  be- 
neath the  surface — than  near  volcanic  rocks,  for  the 
reason  that  lodes  of  value  could  only  be  formed  at  a 
considerable  depth  under  a  solid  covering.  It  is  useless 
to  look  for  lodes  in  sections  of  a  country  covered  with 
lava  and  similar  volcanic  rocks.  Paying  mineral  veins 
are  much  more  likely  to  be  found  in  the  older  than  more 
recent  rocks,  whether  sedimentary  or  igneous.  They 
are  generally  to  be  found  in  places  where  dikes  of  igne- 
ous rocks  have  been  pushed  up  through  the  sedimentary 
rocks,  either  at  the  point  of  contact,  between  two  kinds 
of  rock,  or  at  no  great  distance  on  either  side. 


':| 

1 

^  U 

i. 

I    I    il 


- 1.    J I 

it:       H 


i    !'• 


158 


WHAT  EXPERIENCE  SHOWS. 


■ii 


In  Cornwall  almost  the  whole  of  the  mineral  wealth 
occurs  within  a  space  of  two  or  three  miles  on  each  side 
of  a  granite  and  slate  contact,  but  the  veins  are  not 
richest  on  the  immediate  line  of  contact.  In  Australia 
the  richest  veins  are  found  when  the  diorite,  and  other 
intrusive  plutonic  rocks,  have  formed  dikes  in  the  strati- 
fied rocks.  And  we  see  that  in  California  the  most  noted 
mines  are  near  dikei  of  igneous  rock.  Dikes,  not  con- 
tinuous on  the  surface,  may  continue  underground,  some 
parts  being  pushed  to  a  greater  height  than  others  at 
the  time  of  their  formation.  A  dike,  which  is  continuous 
at  no  great  distance  below  the  overlying  rock,  may  appear 
on  the  surface  as  a  series  ol  **  humps."  These  may  be 
from  half  a  mile  to  a  mile  apart,  but  from  them  the  pros- 
pector will  be  able  to  get  the  course  of  the  dike.  Also, 
where  a  dike  that  shows  on  the  surface  appears  to  come 
to  an  end,  the  prospector  may  take  its  course  and  be 
guided  by  it  in  making  explorations,  in  the  sections 
wholly  covered  by  the  country  rock.  The  veins  lying 
near  the  line  of  the  dike  will  generally  prove  most 
valuable. 

Usually,  when  a  rich  quartz  vein  has  been  discovered, 
there  is  a  "  rush  "  made  for  *'  extensions"  on  the  course 
of  the  strike  of  the  vein,  and  at  times  these  locations  ex- 
tend for  miles.  Let  the  miner  who  does  not  reich  the 
scene  of  the  discovery  in  time  to  locate  a  first  extension 
give  no  further  thought  to  extensions,  but  turn  his  atten- 
tion to  a  search  for  a  parallel  vein.  Systems  of  parallel 
veins,  more  or  less  regular,  depending  upon  the  nature 


!  '■!  y 


PARALLELS  AND  EXTENSIONS. 


159 


of  the  country  rock,  are  found  in  almost  every  quartz 
mining  district  of  California.  The  chances  for  finding  a 
paying  parallel  vein  are  often  much  better  than  for 
locating  the  extension  of  a  newly-discovered  lode,  and, 
as  has  often  happened,  a  parallel  vein  may  be  found 
which  will  prove  richer  than  the  first  of  the  system 
located. 

In  California  the  miner  found,  when  he  first  turned 
his  attention  to  the  quartz  veins,  that  he  was  poorly 
provided  with  methods  and  implements  for  his  task,  but 
in  the  years  which  have  ensued  experience  and  brains 
have  solved  the  problem  of  wresting  the  gold  from  the 
rock,  and  the  operation  is  now  performed,  in  a  well- 
equipped  plant,  with  comparative  ease  and  celerity. 

Prior  to  i860,  quartz  mining  operations  were  in  an 
experimental  stage,  but  about  that  time  the  great  lodes, 
which  were  the  source  from  which  the  rich  deposits  of 
the  California  placer  fields  came,  were  discovered,  and 
p"^n  began  mining  them  seriously.  As  a  rule  then,  the 
miner  blasted  and  picked  out  his  material  with  crude 
implements,  crushed  and  pulverized  it  in  a  ponderous 
machine,  and  extracted  the  gold  by  amalgamation 
on  copper  plates.  This  was  an  operation  on  the 
hasii  of  the  "free  milling"  process.  But  much  more 
than  half  the  gold  escaped  the  seeker  in  the  course  of 
this  operation,  and  only  the  richest  material  would  pay 
the  expenses  of  working.  Only  a  small  percentage  of 
the  gold  in  the  average  quartz  lode  is  present  in  a  free 
state,  and  for  the  rest  intricate  processes  must  be  used 


Si 


,:i 


1     , 
1 

'i  ]  1 

•    \i' 

f 

1 

t 

I 


i  i 


111^ 


i6o 


NATIVE  GOLD. 


to  rescue  it.  Even  with  present-day  methods  a  consid- 
erable percentage  still  is  lost  to  the  miner. 

Native  gold  as  found  in  the  lodes  is  never  quite  pure, 
being  almost  invariably  alloyed  with  silver  and  not  in- 
frequently it  contains  small  proportions  of  copper  and 
iron.  The  gold-bearing  ores  consist  chiefly  of  quartz, 
and  in  some  cases  they  contain  slate,  baryta,  and  talc. 
Occasionally  the  metal  is  found  in  leaf  or  crystallized 
form  between  the  layers  of  rocks,  but  generally  it  is 
scattered  through  in  small  particles,  often  so  minute  as 
to  be  scarcely  visible  to  the  naked  eye. 

When  the  vein  lies  close  to  the  surface,  it  is  the  prac- 
tice of  the  miner  to  strip  the  ground  from  it  and  attack 
the  rock  from  the  top,  as  far  as  permissible,  but  when  it 
dips  into  the  earth  it  is  necessary  to  tunnel  or  sink  a 
shaft  to  follow  it.  The  underground  method  is,  of 
course,  vastly  more  expensive  than  the  first  mentioned. 
The  gold-bearing  rock  being  removed  from  its  resting- 
place  by  the  ordinary  methods  of  blasting,  is  sent  to  the 
surface  in  buckets  lowered  and  raised  in  the  larger 
mines  by  machinery.  The  appearance  of  the  valuable 
ore  is  not  encouraging.  The  average  man  would  fail 
often,  even  with  the  most  careful  examination,  to  detect 
any  signs  of  treasure  in  the  mass.  A  long  and  some- 
what expensive  process  must  be  gone  through  with 
before  the  golden  riches  will  be  revealed. 

Rock-breakers  and  stamps  are  used  first,  and  then  the 
free  gold  is  amalgamated  in  the  battery  by  various  con- 
trivances.    After  the  ore  reaches  the  mill  it  is  weighed. 


!| 


GKuLI'   of    MlMKS   AND   INDIANS. 


Group  of  Klondike  Hold  Minlks, 


'im 


It  is 

the 
prop 
degr 
caug 
ried 
mere] 
still 
Tiiei 
mucl 
ofth 
TI 
brou 
ham 
macl 
type 

ing, 
side, 
jaw 
jaw 
both 
dies 
freqi 
to.  - 
brea 
thro' 
the  ! 
T! 
and 


THE  MILLING  OPERATION. 


I6j 


It  is  then  crushed  to  the  proper  size  for  its  reception  by 
the  stamp  machines,  and  here  the  milHng  operation 
proper  really  begins.  When,  in  the  stamp  mill,  a  suitable 
degree  of  fineness  has  been  reached,  the  free  gold  is 
caught  by  amalgamating  it.  This  operation  may  be  car- 
ried on  in  the  battery  box  itself  or  on  tables  outside,  in 
mercury  wells,  or  by  special  apparatus  in  pans,  or, 
still  again,  by  a  combination  of  some  or  all  these. 
Then  the  escaping  pulp,  which  in  most  cases  contains 
much  the  largest  proportion  of  gold,  is  treated  by  some 
of  the  concentration  methods  to  obtain  the  yellow  metal. 

There  are  still  many  cases  where  the  rock,  when  first 
brought  from  the  mine,  is  broken  by  hand  with  a  heavy 
hammer,  but  this  process  is  usually  performed  by  a 
machine  known  as  a  rock-breaker.  There  are  two  main 
types  of  these  machines.  Both  are  made  of  heavy  cast- 
ing, and  are  box-like  in  form  with  fly-wheels  on  either 
side.  In  one  the  stone  is  crushed  between  a  flat,  fixed 
jaw  and  a  reciprocating  one,  and  in  the  other  the  fixed 
jaw  is  circular  and  the  movable  one  gyrates  inside.  In 
both  cases  the  wearing  faces  of  the  jaws  are  fitted  with 
dies  which  may  be  renewed,  and  they  must  be  changed 
frequently  in  the  course  of  the  severe  task  they  are  put 
to.  As  a  general  rule,  the  stone,  which  is  fed  to  the  rock- 
breaker,  should  come  from  its  mouth  of  a  size  to  pass 
through  a  three-quarter-inch  ring  when  it  is  ready  for 
the  stamp-mill. 

The  original  stamp-mill  consisted  of  a  stone  mortar 
and  pestle.    The  mortar  was  filled  with  the  vein  stuff 


I  f! 


i  i 


) 


^^^^^^^mt^irm&m^m 


164 


BASIS  OF  THE  MODERN  METHOD. 


1  ii 

I 


and  the  whole  ground  to  powder.  Then  the  larger 
grains  of  gold,  which  being  malleable  were  not  reduced 
to  powder,  were  sifted  out.  Finally  the  siftings  were 
placed  in  a  prospecting  pan  and  washed  for  the  fine 
gold.  This  system  is  the  basis  of  the  ordinary  modern 
method. 

The  California  stamp-mill,  which  is  the  one  now  gen- 
erally used,  crushes  the  bits  of  ore  by  means  of  the 
action  of  a  heavy  piece,  the  stamp,  which  is  lifted  by 
appropriate  mechanism  and  allowed  to  fall,  under  the 
action  of  gravity,  upon  the  material  in  the  mortar.  It 
thus  consists  of  three  essential  parts.  The  first  is  the 
mortar  box  proper,  with  its  screens  and  other  attach- 
ments, the  mortar  block,  which  forms  the  foundation, 
and  the  dies,  which  are  the  wearing  face  of  the  anvil 
upon  which  the  ore  is  crushed.  Second,  is  the  stamp, 
which  consists  essentially  of  a  long  stem  carrying  at  its 
extremity  a  head  into  which  is  fitted  a  removable  shoe, 
which  constitutes  the  wearing  face  of  the  stamp.  With 
this  is  included  also  the  tappet,  which  is,  correctly  speak- 
ing, a  part  of  the  lifting  mechanism,  but  as  it  adds  to 
the  weight  of  the  stamp  is  classed  with  it.  Thirdly, 
comes  the  lifting  mechanism,  which  consists  of  a  horizon- 
tal shaft  on  which  are  keyed  cams  acting  on  the  tappets, 
and  also  a  pulley,  which  transmits  the  power  to  the 
shaft.  The  mortar  block  is  usually  constructed  of  sound, 
heavy  pieces  of  timber  bolted  together.  The  mortar- 
box  is  made  of  iron,  as  are  the  other  important  parts  of 
the  machine. 


PROCESS  OF  AMALGAMATION. 


>6S 


In  most  cases  amalgamation  is  commenced  inside  the 
mortar  box,  and  to  this  end  copper  plates  are  fastened 
there.  Five  stamps  usually  compose  what  is  known  as 
a  battery.  The  action  of  the  stamp  is  two-fold,  namely, 
crushing  the  ore  in  the  first  place  and  afterwards  ex- 
pelling the  pulp,  which  consists  of  minute  particles  of 
ore  suspended  in  water,  through  screen  apertures.  A 
Supply  of  clean  water,  is  required,  which  is  so  arranged 
as  to  run  constantly  into  each  battery  when  in  operation. 

After  the  crushing  process  is  completed,  the  process 
of  extraction  of  the  gold  commences.  It  has  already 
been  shown  that  the  gold  occurs  in  its  ores  in  two 
forms,  amalgamable  and  non-amalgamable.  The  former 
is  obtained  sometimes  in  the  crushers  and  sometimes 
after  the  pulp  leaves  the  mill.  In  the  former  case 
mercury,  to  about  the  amount  of  three  times  the  antici- 
pated gold,  is  dropped  in  the  mortar-box.  Falling 
among  the  ore  it  becomes  suspended  in  the  mass,  by  the 
action  of  the  machine,  and  coming  into  contact  with  the 
particles  of  gold  amalgamates  them.  This  amalgam  is 
in  turn  caught  by  the  inside  copper  plates  and  by  other 
similar  devices  outside.  There  are  many  contrivances 
based  on  the  general  principle  of  this  process,  but 
enough  has  been  said  to  give  an  idea  of  the  methods 
employed  by  the  miner. 

When  the  pulp  that  is  pushed  from  the  stamp-mill 
contains  gold  which  refuses  to  amalgamate,  still  another 
scheme  must  be  resorted  to,  which  is  known  as  the  con- 
centration process.    All  those  minerals  which  carry  gold 


i 


I  ! 


■: 


'! 


1 66 


SPECIFIC  GRAVITY  OF  MATERIAL. 


with  them  are  comparatively  heavy.  The  specific  gravity 
of  them  may  be  taken  at  5.5,  while  that  of  the  non- 
metallic  and  worthless  portions  of  the  pulp  may  be  placed 
at  about  3.  The  object  of  the  concentration  process, 
briefly  stated,  is  to  separate  in  the  pulp  mass  all  those 
particles  of  specific  gravity  of  5.5  from  those  of  3.  The 
mechanical  principles  followed  in  doing  this  are  simple, 
though  the  process  is  of  necessity  somewhat  difficult! 
All  bodies  that  are  acted  upon  by  any  force  would  be 
propelled  by  this  force  at  equal  velocities,  if  there  were 
no  resistance  to  their  movement  and  if  no  friction  ex- 
isted. This  theoretical  condition  is,  of  course,  never 
realized,  as  every  body  meets  with  more  or  less  resist- 
ance from  the  medium  which  surrounds  it.  But  when 
by  the  aid  of  the  stamp-mill  the  ore  is  ground  to  a 
powder,  the  particles  of  which  are  approximately  spheri- 
cal in  shape,  and  a  pulp  fo:rmed  by  the  aid  of  water,  and 
the  whole  sent  to  a  concentrator,  there  to  be  subjected 
to  the  action  of  a  force  which  may  be  gravity  or  a 
mechanical  impulse,  the  result  is  that  the  bodies,  light 
and  heavy,  moving  in  a  given  direction  are  separated. 
Thus  the  miner  is  enabled  to  take  his  heavy  mineral 
particles  from  the  lighter  worthless  stuff. 

The  types  of  concentrators  are  three  in  number, 
those  in  which  the  heavy  particles  are  allowed  to  settle 
under  the  action  of  gravity,  those  in  which  the  latter 
action  is  assisted  by  external  means,  as  in  the  case  of 
buddies,  and  those  in  which  force  is  communicated  to 
the  mass  by  mechanical  action. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE    MARKETING,    SMELTING,    ASSAYING,    AND    COINING    OF 

COLD. 

What  the  miner  does  with  the  unrefined  product  of  his  stamp-mill  and  concentrator- 
Processes  which  the  yellow  metal  must  pass  through  before  the  world  ^es  it  as 
coin — The  chlorination  and  cyanide  operations — Acid  baths  to  separate  the 
baser  metals  from  the  treasure — The  great  smelting  furnaces  and  their  daily 
flood  of  riches— Among  the  ingots  of  pure  gold  at  the  mint — The  assajer'a 
difficult  task — The  world's  output  of  gold  in  four  hundred  years. 

AFTER  what  are  termed  sulphurets  have  been  ob- 
tained by  the  miner  in  the  form  of  concentrates  they 
must  pass  through  still  other  processes  before  the  world 
handles  them  in  gold  coin,  jewelry,  and  plate.  These  other 
processes  are  not  in  this  day  regarded  as  a  part  of  the 
mill  man's  duty,  and  the  material  is  usually  sent  to  outside 
assay  and  reduction  works  where  it  is  treated  generally 
by  one  of  two  methods,  the  wet  and  the  smelting. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  here  what  modern  methods 
have  done  in  the  way  of  improvement  in  the  securing  of 
irold  from  ores.  The  Robinson  mine  in  South  Africa 
furnishes  an  admirable  illustration  of  this  as  does  also 
the  Treadwell  mine  in  Alaska.  After  the  treatment  of 
the  Robinson  ore  by  ordinary  stamping  and  amalgama- 
tion methods  the  return  of  gold  in  a  recent  year  was 
$^885,583.  The  tailings  from  the  stamp-mill  were  then 
passed  over  Frue  vanners  by  which  concentrates  amount- 
ing to  nearly  three  thousand  tons  were  obtained.    This 

167 


fi   I 


^t  ,: 


168 


HALF  A  MILLION  SAVEt). 


ii 


product  was  roasted  and  treated  by  chlorination  and 
Jj2i9,5'  I  resulted.  The  tailings  from  the  concentrators 
were  in  turn  passed  through  the  cyanide  works  and 
yielded  jj289,722,  more  than  half  a  million  dollars  being 
reclaimed,  which  under  old  methods  would  have  gone  to 
waste. 

Gold,  when  it  comes  from  the  concentrator,  usually 
contains  silver.  Some  gold  ores  contain  nearly  all  the 
metals  used  in  the  arts,  and  it  will  thus  be  seen  that  the 
material  sent  to  the  assayers  and  smelters  is  of  the  most 
heterogeneous  description,  and  many  methods  must  Le 
used  to  purify  the  mass.  The  most  important  of  these 
are  the  nitric  acid  process,  the  sulphuric  acid  and  the 
electrolytic.  The  latter  is  little  used  outside  the  largest 
smelting  plants. 

Acid-parting  processes  depend  for  their  success  upon 
the  solubility  of  silver,  copper,  and  other  metals  in  a 
liquid  which  will  not  attack  the  gold.  Nitric  acid  was 
first  used  in  Venice  for  this  purpose,  and  for  many  years 
no  other  method  was  known.  The  operation  consists  of 
assorting  and  proportioning  the  bullion,  granulation  ol 
the  same,  solution  of  the  outside  metals  in  acid,  and 
treatment  of  the  thus  parted  materials  by  washing, 
drying,  and  melting. 

Thoroughly  satisfactory  as  is  the  nitric  acid  process, 
so  far  as  its  effectiveness  is  concerned  and  the  high 
grade  of  gold  which  it  yields,  yet  the  comparative  high 
price  of  the  acid  and  the  necessity  for  using  either 
platinum  or  porcelain  vessels  in  the  operation  led  to  its 


SULPHURIC  ACID  PROCESS. 


169 


being  superseded  in  many  plants  by  the  sulphuric  acid 
process. 

The  electrolytic  process  gives  the  most  satisfactory 
results  when  the  bullion  to  be  parted  has  been  refined 
in  a  cupel  furnace  until  it  contains  not  over  two  per  cent, 
of  impurities,  such  as  lead,  copper,  bismuth,  and  the 
like.  The  material  is  cast  from  the  cupel  into  flat  plates 
about  eighteen  inches  long,  ten  inches  wide,  and  one- 
half  inch  thick. 

These  plates  form  the  anodes,  and  are  suspended  by 
three  lugs  cast  on  one  of  Lie  long  sides.  They,  there- 
fore, hang  with  the  greater  length  horizontal.  Tanks  of 
California  redwood  planks  are  very  carefully  made, 
eleven  feet  long  by  two  feet  wide  and  twenty  inches 
deep  (inside  measure).  Six  partitions  are  placed  cross- 
wise in  a  tank  so  as  to  give  seven  separate  cells  or 
"baths."  In  each  cell  three  plates  or  anodes  are  sus- 
pended, alternating  with  four  cathodes.  These  latter 
are  thin-rolled  sheets  of  pure  silver,  thirteen  by  twenty 
by  one-thirty-second  inches  thick,  weighing  fifty  troy 
ounces  each.  The  distance  between  anode  and  cathode 
is  about  one  and  three-ouarter  inches. 

Both  anodes  and  cathodes  are  suspended  by  conduct- 
ing wires  from  copper  rods  resting  on  the  edges  of  the 
tank.  Two  copper  bars  traverse  these  top  edges,  and 
are  connected  with  the  respective  poles  of  the  dynamo. 
The  cross  rods  supporting  the  plates  rest  on  these  bars, 
but  one  end  of  the  rod  carrying  an  anode  is  insulated 
by  a  rubber  band,  while  the  opposite  end  of  the  rod 


f  1' 


:  \ 


170 


CONDUCTING  THE  CURRENT.; 


carrying  a  cathode  is  insulated  in  like  manner.  The 
current  must  therefore  pass  from  one  conductor  to  the 
anodes,  through  the  solution  and  the  cathodes,  to  the 
return  conductor.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  current  is 
divided  between  these  seven  cells  and  that  we  have 
twenty-one  anodes  connected  in  multiple  with  twenty- 
eight  cathodes. 

A  model  plant  consists  of  fourteen  such  tanks  contain- 
ing seven  cells  each.  Ten  of  these  tanks  are  constantly 
in  circuit,  four  being  in  turn  cut  out  for  charging,  dis- 
charging, and  possible  repairs.  These  ten  tanks  are 
connected  in  series.  The  dynamo  furnishes  a  current 
of  one  hundred  and  eighty  amperes,  with  an  electro- 
motive force  of  ninety  volts.  Such  a  current  requires 
twenty-two  horse-power.  The  total  cathode  surface  is 
ten  square  feet  in  each  tank.  There  is,  therefore,  a  cur- 
rent density  of  eighteen  amperes  per  square  foot  of 
cathode  surface.  * 

Each  anode  is  inclosed  in  a  muslin  bag,  that  serves 
to  catch  the  undissolved  metals,  which  fall  as  a  black 
slime.  In  this  are  found  all  the  gold  and  bismuth,  the 
greater  part  of  the  lead  as  peroxide,  together  with  some 
silver  and  copper.  Below  this  system  of  anodes,  cathodes, 
and  bags  in  the  bath,  is  stretched  on  a  box-like  frame  a 
piece  of  cloth,  on  which  is  gathered  the  deposited  silver 
as  it  is  scraped  from  the  cathodes  by  wooden  "  brushes." 
These  brushes  straddle  the  cathodes  without  touching,  and 
are  kept  moving  to  and  fro  by  machinery,  and  they  serve, 
not  only  to  brush  off  the  silver  as  fast  as  it  is  deposited, 


"    rj 


KEFPING  THE  SOLUTION  UNIFORM. 


171 


thus  preventing  short  circuits,  but  also  to  keep  the  soki- 
tion  uniform  by  gentle  agitation. 

The  solution  is  one  of  silver  and  copper  nitrate,  to 
which  about  one  per  cent,  of  nitric  acid  is  added.  The 
acid  tends  to  prevent  the  deposition  of  copper  with  the 
silver,  and  about  one  pint  is  added  to  each  bath  every 
twenty-four  hours.  Three-eights  of  one  volt  will  decom- 
pose silver  nitrate,  while  copper  nitrate  requires  one- 
sixth  of  a  volt  more  and  lead  nitrate  a  still  higher  volt- 
age. 

The  chlorination  process,  which  is  familiar  to  all  gold 
workers,  was  invented  in  1848.  It  depends  upon  the 
fact  that  chlorine  has  a  strong  affinity  for  native  gold, 
and  readily  combines  with  it,  firming  the  soluble  auric 
chloride.  The  solution  containing  the  gold  can  be  filtered 
off  from  the  residue  with  ease.  The  subject  to  be  treated 
is  first  properly  moistened,  in  the  improved  method,  and 
then  shoveled  into  a  vat  with  a  double  bottom.  The 
upper  false  bottom  is  perforated  and  supports  a  suitable 
filter.  Chlorine  gas  is  passed  into  the  space  below  this 
false  bottom,  and  gradually  rises  until  the  vat  is  full. 
The  lid  is  then  adjusted  and  the  whole  allowed  to  remain 
until  the  action  is  complete,  when  the  soluble  chloride  of 
gold  is  washed  out  through  the  filter  into  other  vats,  where 
the  gold  is  precipitated.  Various  precipitants,  such  as 
ferrous  sulphate,  charcoal,  sulphuretted  hydrogen,  and 
others  are  used  for  this  purpose. 

The  presence  of  any  substance  which  chlorine  attacks 
necessarily  causes  a  waste  of  the  gas  and  a  hindrance 


l^i 


4     H 


(<     ' 


r 


172 


PREVENTING  WASTE. 


to  the  process.  It  Is,  therefore,  best  to  calcine  the  concen- 
trates as  perfectly  as  possible  before  attempting  chlori- 
nation. 

All  concentrates  can  be  treated  by  the  smelting  pro- 
cess. Smelting  can,  however,  only  be  practiced  when 
suitable  ores  are  available  for  mixing  to  makt  a  proper 
furnace  charge.  When  argentiferous  lead  ores,  such  as 
galena,  are  smelted  in  the  blast  furnace  it  is  necessary 
to  add  a  flux  of  which  oxide  of  iron  is  an  essential  in- 
gredient, the  products  of  fusion  being  base  bullion,  con- 
sisting of  metallic  lead  which  contains  all  the  gold  pres- 
ent in  the  furnace  charge  and  a  slag  consisting  of  silicates 
usually  of  iron,  lime,  alumina,  magnesia,  and  so  on, 
according  to  the  nature  of  the  fluxes  employed.  Aurifer- 
ous concentrates,  consisting  say  of  iron  and  arsenical 
pyrites,  can  be  employed  in  this  process  by  being  first 
calcined.  There  will  result  an  auriferous  oxide  of  iron, 
which  could  be  added  as  a  flux  to  the  other  ingredients 
of  the  furnace  charge.  Almost  all  the  gold  present  will 
alloy  with  the  lead  produced,  and  will  be  found  in  the 
base  bullion  from  which  it  is  afterwards  separated. 

According  to  the  nature  of  the  other  ingredients,  it  is 
not  infrequently  an  advantage  to  have  a  certain  amount 
of  cruiihed  quartz  lef!,  in  the  concentrates  when  they  go 
to  the  smelter,  but  in  general  it  is  the  rule  of  the  mill 
man  to  send  his  material  there  as  clean  and  rich  as  pos- 
sible. 

A  bath  of  copper  may  be  substituted  for  the  lead  in  the 
smelting  process — that  is,  the  former  metal  is  used  in- 


THE  COPPER  BATH. 


73 


stead  of  the  latter  to  collect  the  precious  particles  in  the 
course  of  the  operation.  This  process  is  particularly 
suitable  when  the  concentrates  contain  a  notable  pro- 
portion of  copper  pyrites  as  the  copper  thus  becomes 
one  of  the  available  ingredients  of  the  product.  Coarse 
copper  is  produced  by  a  series  of  smelting  processes 
carried  on  in  reverberatory  and  blast  furnaces  and  run 
into  slabs,  which  are  refined  by  electrolysis.  During  the 
electrolytic  process  the  gold  in  an  impure  state  is  de- 
posited in  black  mud  at  the  bottom  of  the  vats  and  re- 
fined by  cupellation. 

The  cyanide  process  is  still  another  branch  of  the  re- 
finer's art.  It  is  not  yet  well  understood,  and  can  be 
applied  to  only  a  limited  class  of  ores,  though  these  are 
abundant  in  quantity.  The  process  is  declared  by  ex- 
perts to  have  a  promising  future.  It  will  extract  gold 
often  from  products,  such  as  old  tailings,  upon  which 
other  methods  have  failed.  It  has  its  basis  on  the  fact 
of  the  solubility  of  gold  in  a  solution  of  cynanide  of 
potassium.  As  the  solution  has  no  action  upon  native 
sulphides,  usually  occurring  in  concentrates,  it  is  unlike 
chlorine,  and  calcination  can  be  dispensed  with.  It  is 
therefore  cheaper. 

The  process  consists  simply  in  allowing  a  weak  solution 
of  cyanide  of  potassium  to  percolate  through  crushed 
ore.  It  is  found  that  such  a  solution  dissolves  a  large 
proportion,  perhaps  ninety  per  cent,  of  the  gold  con- 
tents of  the  ore  while  scarcely  attacking  any  of  the  base 
metals  contained.    The  soluUon  then  contains  gold  in 


1 

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THE  CYANIDE  APPARATUS. 


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the  form  of  potassic  aurocyanide,  and  is  filtered  off 
when  the  gold  is  precipitated.  The  apparatus  consists 
of  dissolving  tanks,  in  which  the  solution  is  prepared, 
storage  tanks  in  which  it  is  diluted  to  the  desired  extent, 
leaching  vessels,  in  which  the  lixiviation  proper  is  carried 
out,  and  precipitating  vats  in  which  the  precipitation  takes 
place. 

The  purified  bullion  is  ready  for  issue  in  either  of  the 
two  fields,  industrial  or  coinage.  The  consumption  of  gold 
and  silver  in  the  industrial  arts  is  much  greater  than  is 
generally  supposed.  During  the  year  ending  June  30th, 
1 895, gold  and  silver  bars  for  industrial  use  were  manufac- 
tured in  the  Philadelphia  mint  and  the  assay  office  at  New 
York  to  the  coinage  value  of  j^i  7,818,581,  in  about  equal 
proportions  as  to  value.  Private  refineries  furnished  not 
less  than  ^5,000,000  more.  This  first  cost  for  what  to  the 
gold-beater,  jeweler,  watch-case  maker,  etc.,  is  simply  his 
raw  material,  represents  an  enormous  industry  when  we 
consider  the  amount  of  high-grade  labor  which  is  be- 
stowed on  gold  and  silver  wares.  These  bars  are  0.999 
fine,  and  are  furnished  to  the  public  by  what  may  be 
called  a  system  of  exchange. 

A  depositor  may  bring  crude  bullion  in  any  quantity 
(^100  or  more  in  value)  and  receive  either  fine  gold  bars 
or  coin,  at  his  option,  to  the  full  value  of  the  gold  in  his 
deposit,  less  a  trifling  charge  for  melting,  ass>iying,  part- 
ing, etc.  These  charges  vary  according  to  the  nature  of 
the  deposit,  but  may  amount  to  five  cents  per  ounce. 
The  bars  or  coin  are  delivered  from  stock  on  hand  as  soon 


THE  SYSTEM  OF  EXCHANGE. 


175 


as  the  value  of  the  deposit  is  ascertained  by  assay,  usually 
the  following  day.  For  the  silver  contained  in  gold 
deposit  the  owner  may  either  receive  pure  silver  bars  or 
be  paid  in  silver  dollars  or  currency,  at  the  market  value 
of  silver. 

Having  a  stock  of  refined  gold  and  silver  nearly  pure, 
the  first  step  toward  conversion  into  coin  is  to  make  an 
iilloy  with  copper,  in  such  proportions  as  will  produce 
standard  planchets  or  "  blanks  "  in  the  hands  of  the 
coiner.  While  the  standard  fineness  of  gold  and  silver 
coin  is  the  same,  yet,  as  will  appear  later,  the  quantity  of 
copper  to  be  used  in  the  two  cases  differs  a  little,  yet 
materially. 

Weighed  quantities  of  gold  and  copper,  or  of  silver 
and  copper,  are  melted  together  in  a  large  black-lead 
crucible.  Tlie  molten  metals  thoroughly  mixed  are  then 
poured  into  cast-iron  molds  to  produce  what  are  known 
as  ingots.  These  are  rectangular  bars,  differing  in  size 
according  to  the  kind  of  coin  for  which  they  are  intended. 
The  ingot  for  silver-dollar  coinage  is  i  ^  inches  wide  by 
one-half  inch  thick  and  1 2j/^  inches  long.  Some  70  such 
ingot  bars, are  made  from  one  "melt,"  and  weigh  col- 
lectively about  3,300  ounces  (220  pounds).  All  the 
ingots  are  stamped  with  the  melt  number,  of  which  a 
record  is  kept  by  the  melter  and  refiner,  by  the  assayer, 
and  by  the  superintendent. 

The  crucible  is  set  for  the  day's  work  in  a  furnace 
peculiarly  adapted  to  the  purpose,  and  a  continuous  fire 
maintained,  using  the  best  stone  coal  and  a  natural  draft. 


t 


176 


INGOTS  CUT  BY  MACHINE. 


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Five  or  six  melts  are  made  in  each  furnace  during  the 
eight  hours ;  and  if  the  crucibles  were  taken  out  of  the 
furnace  at  each  time  of  pouring  much  time  would  be  lost 
in  resetting  and  surrounding  it  with  a  fresh  fire. 

The  metal;  when  melted,  is  thoroughly  mixed  by 
stirring  with  a  tool  not  unlike  a  churn-dasher,  and  it  is 
then  ladled  out  into  the  molds  with  what  is  called  a  "  dip- 
ping cup."  This  is  a  small  black-lead  pot  made  with  a 
lip  on  one  side  and  a  straight  edge  on  the  opposite  side 
so  formed  as  not  to  be  crushed  when  firmly  gripped  by 
a  pair  of  nipping  tongs. 

The  molten  metal  is  slowly  poured  from  the  dipping 
cup  into  upright  molds,  of  which  some  twenty  are  placed 
in  a  shallow  iron  pan  convenient  to  the  furnace.  As 
soon  as  a  mold  is  filled  it  is  removed  by  an  attendant 
helper,  and  passed  by  him  to  another,  who  opens  it  on  an 
iron-covered  table  and  throws  out  the  red-hot  ingots. 
These  are  chilled  in  water  and  then  immersed  for  a  few 
minutes  in  very  dilute  sulphuric  acid.  This  latter  removes 
a  slight  coating  of  copper  oxide  and  gives  the  ingots  a 
bright  matte  color.  The  gate  end  of  the  ingot  is  then 
cut  off  in  a  machine  which  has  a  shear  knife.  Th»2  little 
fringe  left  on  the  ingot  by  the  parting  line  of  the  mold 
is  removed  with  a  file,  and  then  each  ingot  receives  a 
number  indicating  the  melt  from  which  it  is  made. 

Standard  coin  is  composed  of  900  parts  of  gold  and 
100  parts  of  purest  copper.  While  the  law  allows  a 
sli^:U  variation  in  the  fineness  of  coin,  to  provide  for  the 
limitations  of  human  workmanship,  yet  this  margin  is 


TRl 


KEEPING  THE  RECORD. 


^17 


sharply  defined  and  is  but  a  small  fraction  of  i  per 
cent. 

The  manufacture  of  gold  ingots  is  much  less  trouble- 
some than  silver.  The  crucible  which  has  a  holding 
capacity  of,  say,  3,300  ounces  of  standard  silver  will 
serve  for  a  gold  melt  of  6,000  to  6,500  ounces  (400  to 
430  pounds  avoirdupois). 

The  fineness  of  gold  bars  is  furnished  to  the  melter 
and  refiner  by  the  assayer  to  the  tenth  of  one-thou- 
sandth. Bars,  preferably  of  identical  fineness,  are 
weighed  off  in  proper  quantity  for  a  melt,  and  placed  on 
a  hand-truck  with  a  melt  number  tagged  to  each  little 
pile  of  bars.  A  sufificient  number  of  such  are  prepared 
for  a  day's  melting.  A  chest  of  drawers  mounted  on  a 
truck  carries  suitable-sized  boxes,  each  having  a  perma- 
nent number  plainly  marked  on  it. 

The  copper  requisite  for  melts  Nos.  1,  2,  3,  etc.,  is 
placed  ir,  boxes  i,  2,  3,  etc.,  and  the  trucks  with  bars  and 
the  one  carrying  the  boxes  of  alloy  meet  in  the  melting 
room,  wbere  the  distribution  is  made,  a  single  melt  at  a 
time — bars  and  alloy — to  each  furnace. 

A  stric  t  record  is  kept,  and  the  melting  room  is  charged 

widi  weight  of  all  metals  sent  into  it  in  the  morning.    At 

the  close  of  work  for  the  day  and   before  the  workmen 

are  dismissed,  all  returns  from  the  room,  whether  ingots, 

tops,  filings,  etc.,  are  weighed,  when  any  shortage,  real 

or  apparent,  will  be  noted.     Of  course  the  returns  never 

exactly  equal  the  charge  sent  out,  since  somt:  little  metal 

will  adhere  to  the  crucibles  and  some  will   be  found  in 
It 


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THE  ACTUAL  "  SWEEPS." 


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the  ashes.  This  is  afterward  recovered  as  "sweeps." 
But  for  the  time  being  these  shortages  are  unknown 
quantities.  Experience,  however,  has  shown  what  may 
be  expected  to  pass  into  the  sweeps,  and  an  allowance 
is  made  in  comparing  the  charge  and  returns  from  the 
day's  work. 

The  sweep  is  a  very  broad  general  term  in  mint  prac- 
tice, and  includes  every  kind  of  waste  material  known 
to  contain,  or  likely  to  contain,  gold  or  silver,  except 
actual  sweepings.  The  floor  of  the  melting  room  is 
swept  each  day,  but  the  gatherings  from  the  broom  are 
carefully  mingled  with  a  suitable  flux  and  thrown  into 
one  of  the  crucibles,  still  hot  and  surrounded  by  the  fire 
left  from  the  day's  work.  A  crucible  is  selected  which 
has  seen  such  service  as  to  entitle  it  to  retirement  from 
age.  On  the  following  morning  the  contents  of  the 
crucible  will  be  found  to  have  "  sweated  "  down,  the  flux 
to  have  fused  into  a  glass,  and  a  lump  of  metal  or  "  king  " 
will  be  found  at  the  bottom  on  breaking  the  crucible. 
This  king  is  weighed,  credited  to  the  melting  room,  sent 
to  and  charged  to  the  refinery. 

The  actual  **  sweeps  '*  consist  of  broken  crucibles  and 
dipping  cups,  all  ashes  from  the  fires,  burnt  gloves, 
aprons,  saw  dust,  and  packages  in  which  bullion  has 
been  sent  to  the  mint,  settlings  in  catch  wells  and  in  roof 
gutters  ;  in  short,  everything  which  may  contain  bullion 
without  its  being  visible  to  the  eye.  ^ 

All  material  of  this  kind  is  sent  to  the  sweep  cellar, 
and  such  as  needs  crushing  is  passed  under  heavy  cast- 


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MiNKK'S   lIoU^K  AND   NAIIVh'-i  ToTKM  VolJi, 


THE  FRENCH  SYSTEM  EMPLOYED. 


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iron  rollers  mounted  in  a  mill  similar  in  principle  to  the 
Chilian.  The  advantage  of  the  roller  crushing  is  that 
while  brittle  materials  are  reduced  to  a  coarse  powder, 
any  pellets  of  metal  will  be  flattened  out  and  caught  in 
the  sifting  operation  which  follows.  These  metallic 
scales  are  melted  down  and  find  their  way  to  the  refinery. 

The  assaying  of  gold  is  still  another  important  process 
which  must  be  gone  through  with  at  the  mint  and  else- 
where to  ascertain  its  fineness  and  value. 

Gold  received  at  the  mint  for  refining  or  coinage, 
cither  in  a  manufactured  or  native  condition,  is  of  every 
variety  of  fineness,  the  alloy  in  a  majority  of  cases  being 
silver,  with  a  smaller  proportion  of  base  metal.  In  some 
cases  of  low-grade  gold  the  alloy  is  largely  composed 
of  copper.  The  object  of  the  assay  is  to  ascertain  these 
different  proportions,  both  in  order  to  base  the  calcula- 
tions for  value  and  for  subsequent  minting  operations. 
For  this  purpose  a  small  sample  is  cut  from  each  bar 
after  melting.  The  fineness  of  this  sample  must,  if  the 
melting  has  been  properly  conducted,  be  the  fineness  of 
the  gross  amount. 

The  fineness  of  gold  being  expressed  in  thousandths 
(pure  gold  being  1,000),  it  has  been  found  expedient  in 
assaying  to  employ  the  French  system  of  weights,  using 
the  demigramme  as  a  unit  of  1,000  parts  with  the  deci- 
mal divisions  to  the  ten  thousandth  of  that  weight.  The 
demigramme  is  rather  less  than  eight  grains.  From  the 
sample,  after  it  has  been  laminated  for  convenience  in 
chipping,  there  is  accurately  weighed  one  demigramme 


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REMOVING  THE  BASE  METAL. 


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on  the  assay  balance.  This  assay  balance  is  so  con- 
structed as  to  be  of  the  utmost  precision  and  delicacy, 
and  so  fine  is  the  adjustment  that  it  is  sensitive  to  the 
fiftieth  of  a  milligramme. 

To  the  gold,  after  being  accurately  weighed,  there  is 
added  sufficient  fine  silver  to  make  about  twice  (accord- 
ing to  one  system)  or  thrice  (according  to  another 
method,  now  less  used)  the  estimated  amount  of  silver 
which  may  be  contained  in  the  alloy,  extreme  care  being 
necessary  that  the  amount  of  silver  added  varies  as  litde 
as  possible  from  this  proportion,  as  in  any  marked  di- 
vergence the  result  would  be  liable  to  inaccuracy. 
Practice  enables  an  expert  to  judge  of  the  fineness  of 
the  gold  within  a  few  thousandths,  thus  securing  the 
proper  basis  for  the  addition  of  silver.  It  is  needless  to 
say  that  the  added  silver  is  accurately  weighed.  If  the 
gold  or  assay  is  of  low  fineness,  or  contains  a  large 
amount  of  base  metal,  where  it  is  impossible  to  estimate 
the  quality,  it  is  customary  to  make  a  preliminary  or 
approximate  assay  as  a  basis  or  guide  for  a  subsequent 
rigid  assay.  ' 

The  gold  and  silver,  each  having  been  weighed,  are  in- 
closed in  a  piece  of  lead  foil  about  ten  times  the  weight 
of  the  assay.  A  very  little  copper  is  added,  merely  to 
assist  the  cupellation.  These  are  now  ready  for  what 
may  be  termed  the  first  part  of  the  operation,  that  of 
removing  the  copper  and  other  base  metal.  This  is 
effected  by  the  cupelling  process.  The  cupel  is  a  small, 
shallow  cup  made  from  the  ash  of  bones  or  the  pith  of 


OXIDIZING  THE  BASE  METAL. 


183 


animal  horns.  It  possesses  the  qiiaHty  of  absorbing  the 
oxides  of  the  metals,  but  not  the  metals  themselves. 
The  bone  or  pij:h  is  first  well  burned  in  open  air  and 
thoroughly  ground,  after  which  it  is  moistened  with 
water  and  pressed  in  a  mold  to  the  desired  shape. 

The  assay  furnace  is  oval  in  cross  section,  about  one 
foot  in  height,  made  of  fire  brick.  Extending  across  the 
furnace  about  the  centre  is  what  is  known  as  the 
"bridge"  (this  is  also  made  of  fire  brick),  and  is  de- 
signed to  support  the  muffle.  The  muffle  is  the  oven 
for  the  reception  of  the  cupels.  It  is  flat-bottomed,  with 
an  arched  top,  its  lengtn  nearly  corresponding  to  the 
depth  of  the  furnace.  The  modern  furnace  is  arranged 
for  burning  gas ;  the  flame  completely  surrounding  the 
muffle  subjects  it  to  a  high  heat,  easily  controlled,  and 
regulated. 

The  front  of  the  furnace  has  an  arched  opening  cor- 
responding to  the  muffle ;  through  this  opening  the 
cupels  are  introduced  by  a  long  pair  of  spring  tongs. 
When  in  operation  the  muffle  is  nearly  closed  by  a  door, 
allowing,  however,  the  entrance  of  a  regulated  current 
of  air,  which,  passing  over  the  assay,  oxidizes  the  lead 
and  base  metals,  their  oxides  being  absorbed  by  the  cupel. 
At  the  back  of  the  muffle  is  a  slit  or  opening,  which 
allows  the  exit  of  the  unabsorbed  fumes  formed  by  the 
oxides  of  the  metals,  which  are  not  absorbed  by  the  cupel. 

The  furnace  having  been  properly  heated,  the  cupels 
are  placed  therein  and  brought  to  a  uniform  temperature, 
of  which  the  assayer  must  judge  from  experience.    . 


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THE  CORNET  OF  FINE  GOLD. 


Each  leaden  bullet,  with  its  contents,  is  then  placed  in 
its  cupel  and  the  furnace  closed.  The  lead,  in  which  the 
gold  and  silver  is  inclosed,  is  rapidly  changed  to  a  fluid, 
vitreous  oxide,  which,  exerting  an  oxidizing  effect  on  the 
base  metals  in  the  gold,  causes  their  absorption  into  the 
pores  of  the  cupel.  The  lead  likewise  serves  to  form  a 
more  uniform  alloy  between  the  gold  and  silver.  The 
precious  metal  is  allowed  to  remain  in  the  cupel  until  all 
agitation  ceases,  when  it  presents  a  bright  surface,  which 
indicates  that  the  base  metals  have  oxidized  and  ab- 
sorbed. The  cupel  is  now  allowed  to  cool  gradually  and 
the  button  of  pure  gold  and  silver  detached. 

The  next  step  is  to  extract  the  silver,  which  is  accom- 
plished by  digesting  the  rolled-out  button  in  nitric 
acid.  The  object  of  the  original  addition  of  the  silver 
is  to  make  an  alloy  in  which  the  particles  of  gold  shall 
be  so  far  separated  from  each  other  that  the  action  de- 
sired shall  not  be  interfered  with.  The  button  is  ham- 
mered and  rolled  into  a  thin  sheet  to  give  the  widest 
possible  surface  for  the  action  of  the  acid.  The  sheet 
is  rolled  loosely  into  what  is  termed  a  cornet.  The  lat- 
ter is  introduced  into  a  small  vessel,  where  a  boiling 
process  in  acid  takes  place.  When  the  digesting  process 
is  completed  it  is  presumed  that  all  silver  has  been  re- 
moved. The  acid  is  poured  off,  the  cornet  well  washed 
and  placed  in  a  small  clay  crucible  to  be  dried  and  an- 
nealed. The  cornet,  which  is  then  fine  gold,  is  taken 
to  the  assay  balance  and  its  weight  ascertained  in  thou- 
sandths of  a  demigramme.     The  number  of  thousandths 


THE  DUPLICATE  ASSAY. 


185 


which  it  weighs  expres^ses  the  fineness  of  the  original 
sample. 

In  assaying  fine  (or  nearly  fine)  gold  the  proof  is 
weighed  to  1,000  parts  of  the  »:est  gold ;  but  in  assaying 
ingots  for  coinage  and  the  ordinary  class  of  deposits  a 
proof  of  900  parts  is  used,  and  in  lower  grades  of  gold  a 
synthetic  proof  is  used  corresponding  to  the  approximate 
or  supposed  fineness  of  the  metal,  the  object  being  to 
subject  an  alloy  of  known  composition  closely  similar  to 
that  under  test  to  identical  treatment. 

After  the  ingots  have  been  made,  the  first  and  last 
ingot  from  every  melt  are  carried  to  the  assay  room  and 
a  sample  slip  taken  from  each.  These  are  assayed 
separately  and  their  fineness  reported  to  the  melter  and 
refiner.  The  ingots  or  melts  which  may  be  too  far  from 
the  legal  standard,  or  fail  to  show  a  uniformity  of  fine- 
ness in  the  assays,  are  condemned.  They  are  then  re- 
melted  with  the  proper  addition  of  either  gold  or  copper, 
as  the  case  may  require,  to  bring  them  to  standard. 

With  every  sample  of  gold  assayed  there  is  also  a 
corresponding  duplicate  assay  made,  to  guard  against 
any  error  which  might  possibly  occur  in  the  various 
assay  processes.  Besides  this,  thii  duplicate  serves  to 
show  if  the  alloy  be  of  a  uniform  fineness  throughout. 
If  such  is  not  the  case  (as  shown  by  the  v^  ration  of  the 
assays),  the  mass  from  which  the  sample  was  taken  is 
remelted  and  stirred  to  make  it  homogeneous,  after 
which  it  is  assayed  in  duplicate  as  before. 

In  case  the  gold  for  assay  be  of  low  fineness,  or  if 


A^^ 


i 

\ 


a 


I  • 


i86 


COIN  FROM  THE  INGOTS. 


there  is  but  a  small  proportion  of  gold  in  the  alloy,  it  is 
found  to  be  expedient  in  preparing  the  assay  to  add 
sufficient  fine  gold  so  that  the  assay  may  contain  900 
parts  of  gold  in  the  thousand.  By  this  course  the  exact 
fineness  of  the  alloy  is  ascertained,  otherwise  an  allow- 
ance^ would  have  to  be  made  for  a  slight  absorption  of 
gold  by  the  cupel,  which  will  happen  when  a  large  pro- 
portion of  alloy  is  present.  When  the  weight  of  the 
cornet  is  ascertained,  the  amount  of  fine  gold  which  was 
added  must  be  deducted,  the  difference  being  the  fine- 
ness of  the  original  alloy. 

It  sometimes  happens  that  the  ordinary  amount  of 
lead  is  insufificient  to  cause  the  entire  elimination  of  all 
the  base  alloy  in  the  gold.  It  may  be,  too,  that  the 
cupel  is  not  capable  of  absorbing  the  entire  amount  of 
lead  which  such  an  assay  would  require.  To  avoid  these 
difficulties  it  is  customary  to  vveigh  the  assay  at  one- 
half  the  usual  weight,  adding  fine  gold  as  described 
above,  thus  diminishing  in  like  proportion  the  amount 
of  base  metal  to  be  oxidized  and  absorbed  by  the  cupel. 

The  ingots  as  received  from  the  melter  and  refiner  by 
the  coiner  vary  in  size  and  weight  according  to  the  de- 
nomination of  the  piece  for  which  they  are  to  be  used. 
The  first  operation  in  converting  ingots  into  coin,  called 
"  breaking  down,"  is  the  passing  of  them  between  heavy 
rolls,  which  results  in  the  ingot  being  formed  into 
"strips.**  To  more  clearly  understand  this,  it  maybe 
said  that  the  ingots  are  divided  into  drafts  of  from  forty 
to  sixty  ingots,   aid  each   draft  passed   between   the 


I  # 


IN  THE  POINTING  ROLLS. 


187 


"  break-down  "  rolls  a  number  of  times,  determined  by 
the  malleability  of  the  metal.  After  each  operation  the 
rolls  are  tightened  and  brought  closer  together  by  means 
of  wedges  under  the  lower  roll,  which  wedges  are  worked 
by  means  of  a  worm  wheel.  Such  tightening  of  the  rolls 
is  shown  by  an  indicator  similar  to  a  clock  dial. 

In  "  breaking  down  "  ingots  the  metal  becomes  hard 
and  springy,  and  too  much  rolling  without  softening 
causes  the  strips  to  crack  and  split.  To  avoid  this  they 
are  annealed  as  follows :  Inclosed  in  copper  canisters, 
sealed  with  potters'  clay  to  ei  elude  air  and  thus  prevent 
oxidation,  the  strips  are  placed  in  a  furnace  heated  to 
about  1,500°  F.,  where  they  remain  for  about  one  hour 
and  a  half,  the  time  depending  upon  the  heat  of  the  fur- 
nace and  the  size  of  the  strips.  After  being  cooled  off 
in  water  and  each  strip  wiped  dry  they  are  ready  for 
further  reduction  in  the  finishing  rolls. 

Double  eagles  and  eagles  are  passed  through  the 
finishing  rolls  three  times,  half-eagles  and  quarter-eagles 
four  times. 

The  strips,  upon  leaving  the  finishing  rolls,  are  again 
annealed,  cut  in  two  for  convenience  in  handling,  and 
taken  to  the  pointing  rolls,  where  the  end  is  flattened  to 
permit  of  an  easy  passage  through  the  dies  of  the  draw- 
bench.  The  draw-benches  are  double,  and  each  section 
is  independent  of  the  other  in  action.  Each  has  two 
dies,  regulated  by  set  screws.  Between  these  dies  the 
pointed  end  of  the  strip  is  passed,  and  being  seized  by 
the  jaws  of  the  carriage,  which  is  drawn  by  means  of  an 


■■I 


isa 


PREPARED  FOR  THE  DIES. 


endless  chain,  the  strip  is  passed  through  and  reduced 
as  near  as  may  be  to  the  standard  weight.  The  opera- 
tion is  similar  to  that  of  wire  drawing.  When  the  strips 
are  drawn  to  the  proper  weight,  which  is  ascertained  by 
weighing,  each  piece  is  weighed  in  the  adjusting  room,  and 
if  found  to  be  heavier  than  the  legal  limit,  is  reduced  within 
the  limit  by  filing  the  edge  of  the  planchet ;  if  lighter 
than  the  legal  limit,  it  is  condemned  and  returned  to  the 
melter  and  refiner  to  be  remelted.  Those  planchets 
which  have  been  adjusted  are  then  taken  to  the  milling 
machines  to  undergo  the  operation  of  having  the  raised 
edge  (technically  termed  "milling")  put  on  them.  The 
milling  protects  the  surface  of  the  coin  from  abrasion. 

In  the  milling  machines  the  planchets  are  fed  by  hand 
into  a  vertical  tube,  and,  one  by  one,  are  caused  to  rotate 
in  a  horizontal  plane  in  a  groove  formed  on  one  side  by 
a  revolving  wheel  and  on  the  other  by  a  fixed  segment  of 
a  corresponding  groove.  Each  piece  as  it  passes  through 
this  narrow  groove  has  its  edge  evenly  forced  up  into  a 
border  or  rim.  The  milled  pieces  are  then  taken  to  the 
cleaning-room  to  be  cleaned.  To  facilitate  the  cleaning, 
as  well  as  to  soften  the  pieces  for  the  imprint  of  the  dies, 
they  are  again  annealed  by  heating  to  a  cherry  red,  then 
dipped  into  a  solution  of  sulphuric  acid  and  water  suffi- 
ciently strong  to  clean  and  brighten  them.  After  being 
thoroughly  rinsed  in  boiling  water  they  are  hand-riddled 
in  sawdust  to  dry  them,  and  are  then  ready  for  the 
stamping-press. 

The  most  important  operation  in  the  stamping  of  a 


m 


THE  DEVIATION  IN  WEIGHT. 


189 


piece  is  the  adjustment  of  the  dies  in  the  press.  This 
adjustment  requires  great  skill  and  long  experience, 
much  depending  upon  the  character  of  the  metal  to  be 
operated  upon.  The  pieces  are  fed  to  the  press  through 
a  vertical  tube,  and  as  each  piece  reaches  the  bottom 
of  the  tube  steel  feeders  carry  it  over  between  the  dies, 
place  it  in  a  steel  collar,  when  the  dies  close  upon  the 
planchet  and  the  obverse  and  reverse  impressions  are 
made.  The  inner  rim  of  the  collar  is  reeded  or  fluted, 
and  the  planchet  before  being  struck  is  slightly  less  in 
diameter  than  the  collar ;  but  the  pressure  upon  the  dies 
causes  the  piece  to  expand  in  the  collar  and  takes  from 
it  the  reeding  on  its  edge. 

There  is  a  limit  of  tolerance  on  individual  pieces,  but 
all  coins  are  far  within  this  limit.  Those  pieces  that  are 
heavier  than  the  standard  weight  are  termed  **  heavies  ;'* 
those  that  are  lighter  than  standard  weight  are  termed 
"  lights."  Gold  coin  is  put  up  in  drafts  of  $5,000  each. 
The  legal  weight  of  $5,000  in  gold  coin  is  268.75  ^^^y 
ounces,  but  there  is  a  deviation  allowed  by  law  of  one- 
hundredth  of  an  ounce  from  this  legal  weight.  In  mak- 
ing up  the  drafts  the  "lights,"  " heavies,"  and  ** stand- 
ards "  are  mixed  so  that  the  deviation  from  268.75  ounces 
shall  not  exceed  one-hundredth  of  an  ounce. 

The  production  of  gold  in  Alaska  in  1 895  was  78,000 
ounces ;  in  1896  it  reached  120,000  ounces. 

The  following  table  is  of  great  interest,  showing,  as  it 
does,  the  world's  output  of  gold  in  the  last  400  years, 
according  to  the  United  States  government  report : 


ill 


190 


THE  WORLD'S  OUTPUT  OF  GOLD. 


PSMOD. 

Gold. 

Annual  average  for  period. 

Total  for  period. 

Fine  ounces. 

Value. 

Fine  ounces. 

Value. 

I 

I493-I52O,  .     . 

186,470 

13,855,000 

5,221,160 

1107,931,000 

2 

I52I-I544,  .     . 

230,194 

4.759,000 

5.524,656 

114,205,000 

3 

1545-1560,.     . 

273,596 

5,656,000 

4,377.544 

90492,000 

4 

I56I-I580,  .     . 

219,906 

4,546,000 

4.398.120 

90,917,000 

5 

I58I-I6OO,  .     . 

237,267 

4,905,000 

4.745.340 

98,095.000 
113,248,000 

6 

I6OI-I62O,  .     . 

273,9«8 

5,662,000 

5,478,360 

7 

I62I-I64O,  .     . 

266,845 

5,516,000 

5.336,900 

110,324,000 

8 

I64I-I660,  .     . 

281,955 

5,828,000 

5,639.110 

116,571,000 

9 

I66I-I68O,  .     . 

297,709 

6,154,000 

5,954,180 

123.084,000 

10 

I68I-I7OO,  .     . 

346,095 

7,154,000 

6,921,895 

143,088,000 

II 

I7OI-I72O,  .     . 

412,163 

8,520,000 

8,243,260 

170403,000 

12 

I72I-I74O,  .     . 

613,422 

12,681,000 

12,268,440 

253,61 1/)00 

13 

1 741-1760,   .      . 

791,211 

16,356,000 

15,824,230 

327,116,000 

14 

I76I-I78O,  .      . 

665,666 

13,761,000 

«3.3"3,3I5 

275,211,000 

15 

I78I-I80O,  .     . 

571,945 

11,823,000 

",438,970 

236464,000 

16 

I80I-I8IO,  .     . 

571,563 

11,815,000 

5.715,627 

118,152,000 

»7 

I8II-I82O,  .     . 

367,957 

7,606,000 

3.679,568 

76,063,000 

18 

1 821-1830,  .     . 

457,044 

9448,000 

4.570444 

94479,000 

'9 

1 831-1840,  .     . 

652,291 

13484,000 

6,522,913 

134,841,000 

20 

I84I-I85O,  .     . 

1,760,502 

36.393,000 

17,605,018 

363,928,000 

21 

1851-1855,.     . 

6,410,324 

132,513,000 

32,051,621 

662,566,000 

22 

I856-I86O,  .     . 

6,486,262 

134,083,000 

32431,312 

670415,000 

23 

I86I-I865,  .     . 

5,949,582 

122,989,000 

29,747.9»3 

614,944,000 

24 

1866-1870,  .     . 

6,270,086 

129,614,000 

3  >. 350,430 

648^)71,000 

25 

I87I-I875,.     . 

5,591,014 

115,577,000 

27.955.068 

577,883,000 

26 

I876-I88O,  .     . 

5.543."o 

114,586,000 

27,715.550 

572,931,000 

27 

I88I-I885,  .     . 

4,794,755 

99,116,000 

23.973.773 

495,582,000 

28 

1886 

5,135,679 

106,163,900 

5.135.679 

106,163,900 

29 

1887.      .     .      .     . 

5,116,861 

105,774.900 

5,116,861 

105,774.900 

30 

1888 

5,330,775 

110,196,900 

5,330,775 

110,196,900 

31 

1889,      .     .      .     . 

5.973,790 

123489,200 

5.973.790 

123489,200 
118,848,700 

32 

1890,      .     .     .     . 

5.749,306 

118,848,700 

S.749,306 

33 

I89I,      .     .     .     . 

6,320,194 

>  30,650,000 

6,320,194 

130,650,000 

34 

1892 

7,094,266 

146,651,500 

7,094,266 

146,651,500 

35 

1893 

7,618,811 

157,494,800 

7,618,811 

157,494.800 

36 

1894 

8.783,342 

181,567,800 

8,783.342 

181,1,67,800 

37 

1895 

Total,  .   . 

9,694,640 

200406,000 

9.694,640 

200406,000 

424,822,381 

8,781,858,700 

CHAPTER  IX. 


!i   .  i 


MINING   LAWS   OF   THE   UNITED    STATES   AND   NORTHWEST 

TERRITORIES. 

Early  Laws  on  the  Yukon — Gold  and  Silver  Mines  the  Property  of  Kin^— 
The  Establishment  of  a  Gold  Commissioner  at  Fort  Cudahy— The 
Newly  Promulgated  Canadian  Mining  Regulations  —  Alternate 
Claims  Reserved  for  the  Crown — ^The  Levying  of  Royalties — Char- 
tering of  Companies  in  the  Northwest  Territories — Fees  for  Incor- 
poration— Application  of  the  United  States  Land  Laws  to  Alaska — 
The  Mining  Acts  of  1866  and  1872— The  Miners'  Meetings— Size 
and  Location  of  Claims— The  Camp  Recorder  and  His  Pees. 

MINING  has  been  going  on  along  the  Yukon  for  a 
good  many  years,  and  but  little  attention  has 
been  paid  to  the  statutes  covering  claims.  There  has 
been  room  for  all,  a  few  rudely-framed  rules  were  estab- 
lished and  in  general  observed,  and  for  the  rest  might 
gave  right.  The  U»uted  States  Government  has  never 
until  quite  recendy  shown  any  disposition  to  enforce 
laws  of  any  kind  in  the  Alaskan  interior.  Naturally  the 
mining  code  of  the  United  States  has  played  but  an 
insignificant  r6le  along  the  Birch  and  other  gold-produc- 
ing waters.  The  same  is  true  of  the  territory  on  the 
Canadian  side  of  the  boundary  line.  The  Dominion 
Mining  Laws,  enacted  in  1889,  were  nominally  in  force 
within  a  very  recent  date,  but  as  no  provisions  were 
made  to  carry  out  their  vanous  clauses,  they  have  been 
honored  more  in  the  breach  than  in  the  observance. 
However,  when  the  great  finds  along  the  Klondike  and 
other  Canadian  waters  became  known,  the  Dominion 
officials  saw  fit  to  revise  these  laws  and  also  to  provide 


-.:.« 


|i   'i    : 


tl\ 


I 


192 


GOLD  COMMISSIONER. 


for  their  enforcement.  No  restrictions  have  been  placed 
upon  Americans  in  working  claims  upon  Canadian  soil, 
and,  unless  some  change  is  made  later  on,  the  American 
citizen  on  the  Klondike  will  work  on  an  equal  footing 
with  subjects  of  the  Queen.  Gold  and  silver  mines  have 
always  been  looked  upon  as  the  property  of  the  sover- 
eign by  virtue  of  the  royal  prerogative.  Acting  on  this 
principle,  it  has  been  the  disposition  of  most  states  to 
treat  gold  and  silver  mines  as  public  property,  and  a 
part  of  the  natural  domain  worked  by  the  state  on  its 
own  account  or  granted  by  the  state  to  individuals  to  be 
worked  by  them  under  certain  restrictions. 

In  order  to  carry  out  the  newly-promulgated  laws,  the 
Canadian  Government  has  established  at  Ft.  Cudahy 
a  Gold  Commissioner  invested  with  extraordinary 
powers.  In  order  to  strengthen  his  hands  in  carrying 
on  the  arduous  duties  of  his  post,  the  force  of  Mounted 
Police  in  the  district  has  been  materially  strengthened. 

Copies  of  the  regulations  now  in  force  along  the 
Yukon  River  and  its  tributaries  in'  the  Northwest  Terri- 
tories ol  the  Dominion  of  Canada,  with  such  changes  as 
may  be  made  in  them  from  time  to  time,  can  be  obtained 
by  applying  to  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  Ottawa, 
Ontario ;  or  to  the  Gold  Commissioner,  at  Fort  Cudahy, 
Yukon  District,  Northwest  Territories,  Canada. 

These  laws,  as  they  now  stand,  read  as  follows  : 

**  Interpretation. 

"  '  Bar  diggings'  shall  mean  any  part  of  a  river  over 
which  the  water  extends  when  the  water  is  in  its  flooded 
state,  and  which  is  not  covered  at  low  water. 


MININO  TERMS. 


193 


''  Mines  on  benches  shall  be  known  as  bench  diggings, 
and  shall  for  the  purpose  of  defining  the  size  of  such 
claims  be  excepted  from  dry  diggings. 

"  '  Dry  diggings '  shall  mean  any  mine  over  which 
a  river  never  extends. 

•* '  Miner'  shall  mean  a  male  or  female  over  the  age 
of  eighteen,  but  not  under  that  age. 

*' '  Claims  '  shall  mean  the  personal  right  of  property 
in  a  placer  mine  or  diggings  during  the  time  for  which 
the  grant  of  such  mine  or  diggings  is  made. 

'"Legal  post'  shall  mean  a  stake  standing  not  less 
than  four  feet  above  the  ground  and  squared  on  four 
sides  for  at  least  one  foot  from  the  top.  Both  sides  so 
squared  shall  measure  at  least  four  inches  across  the 
face.  It  shall  also  mean  any  stump  or  tree  cut  off  and 
squared  or  faced  to  the  above  height  and  size. 

"*  Close  season '  shall  mean  the  period  of  the  year 
during  which  placer  mining  is  generally  suspended. 
The  period  to  be  fixed  by  the  gold  commissioner  in 
whose  district  the  claim  is  situated. 

"'Locality'  shall  mean  the  territory  along  a  river 
(tributary  of  the  Yukon)  and  its  affluents. 

"'Mineral'  shall  include  all  minerals  whatsoever 
other  than  coal. 


*t 


NATURE  AND  SIZE  OF   CLAIMS. 


**  First,  Bar  diggings :  A  strip  of  land  one  hundred 
feet  wide  at  high- water  mark  and  thence  extending  along 
into  the  river  to  its  lowest  water  level. 

"  Second,  The  sides  of  a  claim  for  bar  diggings  shall 


i        i 

1 

■I 

194 


SIZB  OP  CLAIMS. 


be  two  parallel  lines  run  as  nearly  as  possible  at  right 
angles  to  the  stream,  and  shall  be  marked  by  four  legal 
posts,  one  at  each  end  of  the  claim  at  or  about  high- 
water  mark,  also  one  at  each  end  of  the  claim  at  or  about 
the  edge  of  the  water.  One  of  the  posts  at  high-water 
mark  shall  be  legibly  marked  with  the  name  of  the  miner 
and  the  date  upon  which  the  claim  is  staked. 

"  Third,  Dry  diggings  shall  be  one  hundred  feet 
square,  and  shall  have  placed  at  each  of  its  four  corners 
a  legal  post,  upon  one  of  which  shall  be  legibly  marked 
the  name  of  the  miner  and  the  date  upon  which  the 
claim  was  staked. 

^*  Fourth.  Creek  and  river  claims  shall  be  500  feet 
long,  measured  in  the  direction  of  the  general  course  of 
the  stream,  and  shall  extend  in  width  from  base  to  base 
of  the  hill  or  bench  on  each  side,  but  when  the  hill  or 
benches  are  less  than  100  feet  apart,  the  claim  may  be 
100  feet  in  depth.  The  sides  of  a  claim  shall  be  two 
parallel  lines  run  as  nearly  as  possible  at  right  angles  to 
the  stream.  The  sides  shall  be  marked  with  legal  posts 
at  or  about  the  edge  of  the  water,  and  at  the  rear 
boundaries  of  the  claim.  One  of  the  legal  posts  at  the 
stream  shall  be  legibly  marked  with  the  name  of  the 
miner  and  the  date  upon  which  the  claim  was  staked. 

**  Fifth,  A  bench  claim  shall  be  100  feet  square,  and 
shall  have  placed  at  each  of  its  four  corners  a  legal  post 
upon  which  shall  be  legibly  marked  the  name  of  the 
miner  and  the  date  upon  which  the  claim  was  staked. 

''Sixth.  Entry  shall  only  be  granted  for  alternate 
claims,  the  other  alternate  claims  being  reserved  for  the 


PBNALTI^. 


195 


crown,  to  be  disposed  of  at  public  auction,  or  in  such 
manner  as  may  be  decided  by  the  Minister  of  the  In- 
terior. 

**  The  penalty  for  trespassing  upon  a  claim  reserved 
for  the  Crown  shall  be  immediate  cancellation  by  the 
Gold  Commissioner  of  any  entry  or  entries  which  the 
person  trespassing  may  have  obtained,  whether  by  orig- 
inal entry  or  purchase  for  a  mining  claim,  and  the  re- 
fusal by  the  Gold  Commissioner  of  the  acceptance  of 
any  application  which  the  person  trespassing  may  at  any 
time  make  for  a  claim.  In  addition  to  -^ich  penalty,  the 
mounted  police,  upon  a  requisition  from  the  Gold  Com- 
missioner to  that  effect,  shall  take  the  lecessary  steps  to 
eject  the  trespasser. 

**  Seventh.  In  defining  the  size  of  claims,  they  shall  be 
measured  horizontally,  irrespective  of  inequalities  on  uie 
surface  of  the  ground. 

"Eighth.  If  any  person  or  persons  shall  discover  a 
new  mine,  and  such  discovery  shall  be  established  to  the 
satisfaction  of  the  Gold  Commissioner,  a  claim  for  the 
bar  diggings  750  feet  in  length  may  be  granted. 

"  A  new  stratum  of  auriferous  earth  or  gravel  situated 
in  a  locality  where  the  claims  are  abandoned  shall,  for 
this  purpose,  be  deemed  a  new  mine,  although  the  same 
locality  shall  have  previously  been  worked  at  a  different 
level. 

**  Ninth,  The  forms  of  application  for  a  grant  for 
placer  mining  and  the  grant  of  the  same  shall  be  those 
contained  in  forms  '  H '  and  '  J '  in  the  schedule  hereto 
attached. 


!  .\ 


k" 


■■h  \ 


"i^^pl^lpip 


196 


PBBS  AND  ROYAI/TIBS. 


it 


Tenth,  A  claim  shall  be  recorded  with  the  Gold 
Commissioner  in  whose  district  it  is  situated  within  three 
days  after  the  location  thereof,  if  it  is  located  within  ten 
miles  of  the  commissioner's  office.  One  extra  day  shall 
be  allowed  for  making  such  record  for  every  additional 
ten  miles  and  fraction  thereof. 

''Eleventh.  In  the  event  of  the  absence  of  the  Gold 
Commissioner  from  his  office,  entry  for  a  claim  may  be 
granted  by  any  person  whom  he  may  appoint  to  perform 
his  duties  in  his  absence. 

"  Twelfth,  Entry  shall  not  be  granted  for  a  claim 
which  has  not  been  staked  by  the  applicant  in  person,  in 
the  manner  specified  in  these  regulations.  An  affidavit 
that  the  claim  was  staked  out  by  the  applicant  shall  be 
embodied  in  form  *  H '  of  the  schedule  hereto  attached. 

"  Thirteenth,  An  entry  fee  of  ^15  shall  be  charged  the 
first  year  and  an  annual  fee  of  J 100  for  each  of  the  fol- 
lowing years.  This  provision  shaH  apply  to  the  locations 
for  which  entries  have  already  been  granted. 

**  Fourteenth,  A  royalty  of  ten  per  cent,  on  the  gold 
mined  shall  be  levied  and  collected  by  the  officers  to  be 
appointed  for  the  purpose,  provided  the  amount  so 
mined  and  taken  from  a  single  claim  does  not  exceed 
five  hundred  dollars  per  week.  In  case  the  amount 
mined  and  taken  from  any  single  claim  exceeds  five 
hundred  dollars  per  week,  there  shall  be  levied  and 
collected  a  royalty  of  ten  per  cent,  upon  the  amount 
so  taken  out  up  to  five  hundred  dollars,  and  upon  the 
excess,  or  amount  taken  from  any  single  claim  over  five 
hundred  dollars  per  week,  there  shall  be  levied  and  col- 


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FAI^B  STATBMBNTS. 


199 


lected  a  royalty  of  twenty  per  cent,  such  royalty  to  form 
part  of  the  consolidated  Revenue,  and  to  be  accounted 
for  by  the  officers  who  collect  the  same  in  due  course. 
The  time  and  manner  in  which  such  royalty  shall  be  col- 
lected, and  the  person  who  shall  collect  the  same,  shall 
be  provided  for  by  regulations  to  be  made  by  the  Gold 
Commissioner. 

Default  in  payment  of  such  royalty,  if  continued  for 
ten  days,  after  notice  has  been  posted  upon  the  claim  in 
respect  of  which  it  is  demanded,  or  in  the  vicinity  of  ^uch 
claim,  by  the  Gold  Commissioner  or  his  agent,  shall  be 
followed  by  cancellation  of  the  claim.  Any  attempt  to 
defraud  the  Crown  by  withholding  any  part  of  the  revenue 
thus  provided  for,  by  making  false  statements  of  the 
amount  taken  out,  shall  be  punished  by  cancellation  of 
the  claim  in  respect  of  which  fraud  or  false  statements 
have  been  committed  or  made.  In  respect  of  the  facts 
as  to  such  fraud  or  false  statements  or  non-payment  of 
royalty,  the  decision  of  the  Gold  Commissioner  shall  be 
final. 

**  Fifteenth,  After  the  recording  of  a  claim,  the  removal 
of  any  post  by  the  holder  thereof,  or  any  person  acting 
in  his  behalf,  for  the  purpose  of  changing  the  boundaries 
of  his  claim,  shall  act  as  a  forfeiture  of  the  claim. 

'*  Sixteenth,  The  entry  of  every  holder  for  a  grant  for 
placer  mining  must  be  renewed,  and  his  receipt  relin-* 
quished  and  replaced  every  year,  the  entry  fee  being 
paid  each  year. 

"  Seventeenth,  No  miner  shall  receive  a  grant  for  more 
than  one  mining  claim  in  the  same  locality ;  but  the  same 


i 


i; 


,p  ■' 


I 


IIP 


«>v 


4- 

itt! 


200 


SAI^B  OR  MORTGAGE. 


miner  may  hold  any  number  of  claims  by  purchase,  and 
any  number  of  miners  may  unite  to  work  their  claims 
in  common  upon  such  terms  as  they  may  arrange,  pro- 
vided such  agreement  be  registered  with  the  Gold  Com- 
missioner and  a  fee  of  $5  paid  for  each  registration. 

"  Eighteenth,  /.ny  miner  or  miners  may  sell,  mortgage, 
or  dispose  of  his  or  their  claims,  provided  such  disposal 
be  registered  with  and  a  fee  of  $2  paid  to  the  Gold  Com- 
missioner, who  shall  thereupon  give  the  assignee  a  cer- 
tificate in  form  "  J  "  in  the  schedule  hereto  attached. 

^^  Nineteenth,  Every  miner  shall,  during  the  continu- 
ance of  his  grant,  have  the  exclusive  right  of  entry  upon 
his  own  claim  for  the  miner-like  working  thereof  and  the 
construction  of  a  residence  thereon,  and  shall  be  entitled 
exclusively  to  all  the  proceeds  realized  therefrom ;  but 
he  shall  have  no  surface  rights  therein,  and  the  Gold 
Commissioner  may  grant  to  the  holders  of  adjacent 
claims  such  rights  of  entry  thereon  as  may  be  absolutely 
necessary  for  the  working  of  their  claims  upon  such 
terms  as  may  to  him  seem  reasonable.  He  may  also 
grant  permits  to  miners  to  cut  timber  thereon  for  their 
own  use  upon  payment  of  the  dues  prescribed  by  the 
regulations  in  that  behalf 

'*  Twentieth,  Every  miner  shall  be  entitled  to  the  use 
of  so  much  of  the  water  naturally  flowing  through  or 
•past  his  claim,  and  not  already  lawfully  appropriated,  as 
shall  in  the  opinion  of  the  Gold  Commissioner,  be  neces- 
sary for  the  due  working  thereof,  and  shall  be  entitled  to 
drain  his  own  claim  free  of  charge. 

Twenty-first,  A  claim  shall  be  deemed  to  be  aban- 


MINER'S  RIGHTS. 


201 


doned  and  open  to  the  occupation  and  entry  by  any 
person  when  the  same  shall  have  remained  un worked 
on  working  days  by  the  grantee  thereof  or  by  some 
person  on  his  behalf  for  the  space  of  seventy-two  hours, 
unless  sickness  or  other  reasonable  cause  may  be  shown 
to  the  satisfaction  of  the  Gold  Commissioner,  or  unless 
the  grantee  is  absent  on  leave  given  by  the  Commis- 
sioner, and  the  Gold  Commissioner,  upon  obtaining  evi- 
dence satisfactory  to  himself  that  this  provision  is  not 
being  complied  with,  may  cancel  the  entry  given  for  a 
claim. 

^^Twenty-second,  If  the  land  upon  which  a  claim  has 
been  located  is  not  the  property  of  the  Crown,  it  will  be 
necessary  for  the  person  who  applies  for  entry  to  furnish 
proof  that  he  has  acquired  from  the  owner  of  the  land 
the  surface  right  before  entry  can  be  granted. 

**  Twenty-third,  If  the  occupier  of  the  land  has  not  re- 
ceived a  patent  therefor,  the  purchase-money  of  the  sur- 
face rights  must  be  paid  to  the  Crown,  and  a  patent  of 
the  surface  rights  will  issue  to  the  party  who  acquired 
the  mining  rights.  The  money  so  collected  will  either 
be  refunded  to  the  occupier  of  the  land  when  he  is  enti- 
tled to  a  patent  therefor,  or  will  be  credited  to  him  on 
account  of  payment  for  land. 

*'  Twenty-fourth,  When  the  party  obtaining  the  min- 
ing rights  cannot  make  an  arrangement  with  the  owner 
thereof  for  the  acquisition  of  the  surface  rights,  it  shall 
be  lawful  for  him  to  give  notice  to  the  owner  or  his 
agent,  or  the  occupier,  to  appoint  an  arbitrator  to  act 
with  another  arbitrator  named  by  him  in  order  to  award 


i: 


I:. 


I»'L 


202 


ARBITRATORS— HOW  SWORN 


the  amount  of  compensation  to  which  the  owner  or  oc- 
cupant shall  be  entitled.  The  notice  mentioned  in  this 
section  shall  be  according  to  form,  to  be  obtained  upon 
application  from  the  Gold  Commissioner  for  the  district 
in  which  the  lands  in  question  lie,  and  shall,  when  practi- 
cable, be  personally  served  on  such  owner  or  his  agent, 
if  known,  or  occupant,  and  after  reasonable  efforts  have 
been  made  to  effect  personal  service  without  success, 
then  such  notice  shall  be  served  upon  the  owner  or 
agent  within  a  period  to  be  fixed  by  the  Gold  Commis- 
sioner before  the  expiration  of  the  time  limited  in  such 
notice.  If  the  proprietor  refuses  or  declines  to  appoint 
an  arbitrator,  or  when,  for  any  other  reason,  no  arbitrator 
is  appointed  by  t- .e  proprittOi  in  the  time  limited  there- 
for in  the  notice  provided  by  this  section,  the  Gold  Com- 
missioner for  the  district  in  which  the  lands  in  question 
lie  shall,  on  being  satisfied  by  afifidavit  that  such  notice 
has  come  to  the  knowledge  of  such  owner,  agent,  or 
occupant,  or  that  such  owner,  agent,  or  occupant,  will- 
fully evades  the  service  of  such  notice,  or  cannot  be 
found,  and  that  reasonable  efforts  have  been  made  to 
effect  such  service,  and  that  the  notice  was  left  at  the 
last  place  of  abode  of  such  owner,  agent,  or  occupant, 
appoint  an  arbitrator  on  his  behalf. 

''Twenty-fifth,  (a)  All  arbitrators  appointed  under  the 
authority  of  these  regulations  shall  be  sworn  before  a 
Justice  of  the  Peace  to  the  impartial  discharge  of  the 
duties  assigned  to  them,  and  they  shall  forthwith  proceed 
to  estimate  the  reasonable  damages  which  the  owner  or 
occupant  of  such  lands  according  to  their  several  inter- 


CERTinCATB  OP  ASSIGNMENT. 


ao3 


ests  therein  shall  sustain  by  reason  of  such  prospecting 
and  mining  operations. 

"(b)  In  estimating  such  damages  the  arbitrators  shall 
determine  the  value  of  the  land,  irrespectively  of  any 
enhancement  thereof  from  the  existence  of  mineral 
therein. 

"(c)  In  case  such  arbitrators  cannot  agree  they  may 
select  a  third  arbitrator,  and  when  the  two  arbitrators 
cannot  agree  upon  a  third  arbitrator  the  gold  commis- 
sioner for  the  district  in  which  the  lands  in  question  lie 
shall  select  such  third  arbitrator. 

"(d)  The  award  of  any  two  such  arbitrators  made  in 
writing  shall  be  final,  and  shall  be  filed  v/ith  the  gold 
commissioner  for  the  district  in  which  the  lands  lie. 

"  If  any  cases  arise  for  which  no  provision  is  made  in 
these  regulations,  the  provisions  of  the  regulations  gov- 
erning the  disposal  of  mineral  lands  other  than  coal 
lands,  approved  by  his  Excellency  the  Governor  in  coun- 
cil on  the  9th  of  November,  1889,  shall  apply." 

The  following  is  the  form  which  a  certificate  of  assign- 
ment  of  a  placer  claim  assumes  : 

"Form  *J.'  r    , 

"  No.  -. 

"  Department  cf  the  Interior. 

"Agency,  ■  ,18 — . 

"  This  is  to  certify  that  (B.  C.)  has  (or  have)  filed  an 
assignment  in  due  form  dated 1 8 — ,  and  accom- 
panied by  a  registration  fee  of  ♦wo  dollars,  of  the  grant 

to  (A.  B.)  of ,  of  the  right  to  mine  in 

■  (insert  description  of  claim)  for  one  year  from 

— .  18—. 


M 


■I     ii 


^  M 


f!     1; 


4>* 


204 


RIGHTS  CONVEYED. 


"  This  certificate  entitles  the  said (B.  C.)  to  all 

rights  and  privileges  of  the  said  (A.  B.)  in  re- 
spect of  the  claim  assigned — that  is  to  say,  the  exclusive 
right  of  entry  upon  the  said  claim  for  the  miner-like 
working  thereof,  and  the  construction  of  a  residence 
thereon,  and  the  exclusive  rights  to  all  proceeds  there- 
from for  the  remaining  portion,  of  the  year  for  which  said 

claim  was  granted  to  the  said (A.  B.) — that  is  to 

say,  until  the ,  i8 — . 

"  The  said (B.  C.)  shall  be  entitled  to  the  use 

of  so  much  of  the  water  naturally  flowing  through  or 
past  his  (or  their)  claim,  and  not  already  lawfully  appro- 
priated, as  shall  be  necessary  for  the  due  working  there- 
of, and  to  drain  the  claim  free  of  charge. 

"  This  grant  does  not  convey  to  the  said (B.C.) 

any  surface  rights  in  said  claim  or  any  rights  of  owner- 
ship in  the  soil  covered  by  the  said  claim,  and  the  said 
grant  shall  lapse  and  be  forfeited  unless  the  claim  is  con- 
tinually and  in  good  faith  worked  by  the  said  (B.  C.)  or 
his  (or  their)  associates. 

*'  The  rights  hereby  granted  are  those  laid  down  in 
the  Dominion  Mining  Regulations,  and  are  subject  to  all 
provisions  of  the  said  regulations,  whether  the  same  are 
expressed  herein  or  not. 


(( 


*'Gold  Commissioner** 
A   specimen   application   blank  for  grant  for  placer 

claim  and  affidavit  of  applicant  is  as  follows  : 

"FormH. 
*'I,  (or  we)  of  ',  hereby  apply  under  the  Do- 


CI^AIMS  CONTINUED. 


205 


minion  Mining  Regulations  for  grant  of  a  claim  for  placer 

mining  as  defined  in  the  said  regulations  in (here 

describe  locality),  and  I  (or  we)  solemly  swear : 

"  First  That  I  (or  we)  am  (or  are)  to  the  best  of  my 
(or  our)  knowledge  and  belief  the  first  discoverer  (or 
discoverers)  of  the  said  deposit ;  or, 

^*  Second.  That  the  said  claim  was  previously  granted 
to (here  name  the  last  grantee),  but  has  remained 


unworked  by  the  said  grantee  for  not  less  than . 

'*  Third,  That  I  (or  we)  am  (or  are)  unaware  that  the 
land  is  other  than  vacant  Dominion  lands. 

"  Fourth,  That  I   (or  we)  did  on  the day  of 


mark  out  on  the  ground  in  accordance  in  every 

particular  with  the  provisions  of  the  mining  regulations 
for  the  Yukon  River  and  its  tributaries  the  claim  for 
which  I  (or  we)  make  this  application,  and  that  in  so 
doing  I  (or  we)  did  not  encroach  on  any  other  claim  or 
mining  location  previously  laid  out  by  any  other  person. 

*'  Fifth.  That  the  same  claim  contains  as  nearly  as  I 

(or  we)  could  measure  or  estimate  an  area  of  — 

square  feet,  and  that  the  description  (and  sketch,  if  any) 
of  this  date  hereto  attached  signed  by  me  (or  us)  sets 
(or  set)  forth  in  detail  to  the  best  of  my  (or  our)  know- 
ledge and  ability  its  position,  form,  and  dimensions. 

^^  Sixth.  That  I  (or  we)  make  this  application  in  good 
faith  to  acquire  the  claim  for  the  sole  purpose  of  mining, 
prosecuted  by  myself  (or  us),  or  by  myself  and  asso- 
ciates, or  by  my  (or  our)  assigns. 

"  Sworn  before  me ,  at  — —  this day 

of .  18—. 


(Signature.) 


i# 


»» 


1 

\ 


I 


#'V 


2o6 


PI^ACBR  CLAIM  GRANT. 


A  grant  for  a  placer  claim  reads  thus : 
"  Form  '  1/ 

*'  Department  of  the  Interior, 

"Agency, ,  i8 — 

'*  In  consideration  of  the  payment  of  the  fee  prescribed 
by  clause  1 2  of  the  mining  regulations  of  the  Yukon 
River  and  its  tributaries  by (A.  B.),  accompany- 
ing his  (or  their)  application  No. ,  dated — , 

18 — ,  for  a  mining  claim  in (here  insert  descrip- 
tion  of  locality),  the   Minister  of  the  Interior  hereby 

grants  to  the  said (A.  B.),  for  the  term  of  one 

year  from  the  date  hereof,  the  exclusive  right  of  entry 
upon  the  claim  (here  describe  in  detail  the  claim). 

**  Granted,  For  the  miner-like  working  thereof  and 
the  construction  of  a  residence  thereon,  and  the  exclu- 
sive right  to  all  the  proceeds  derived  therefrom.     That 

the  said (A.  B.)  shall  be  entitled  to  the  use  of  so 

much  water  naturally  flowing  through  or  past  his  (or  their 
claim,  and  not  already  lawfully  appropriated,  as  shall  be 
necessary  for  the  due  working  thereof,  and  to  drain  his 
(or  their)  claim  free  of  charge. 

**  This  grant  does  not  convey  to  the  said (A.B.) 

any  surface  right  in  the  said  claim  or  any  right  of  owner- 
ship in  the  soil  covered  by  the  said  claim,  and  the  said 
grant  shall  lapse  and  be  forfeited  unless  the  claim  is  con- 
tinuously and  in  good  faith  worked  by  the  said 

(A.  B.)  or  his  (or  their)  associates. 

•*  The  rights  hereby  granted  are  those  laid  down  in  the 
aforesaid  mining  regulations  and  no  more,  and  are  sub- 


POWERS  OP  ASSEMBI^Y. 


ao7 


ject  to  all  the  provisions  of  the  said  regulations,  whether 
the  same  are  expressed  herein  or  not. 


« 


*  '  **  Gold  Commissioner,** 
The  local  government  of  the  Northwest  Territories, 
now  having  a  standing  as  a  representative  part  of  the 
Dominion  of  Canada,  is  in  the  hands  of  a  legislative 
assembly.  The  territorial  assembly  is  empowered  to 
incorporate  companies  with  purely  territorial  objects, 
except  railway,  steamship,  canal,  transportation,  tele- 
graph, insurance,  and  street  railway  companies.  Ap- 
plications for  charters  for  companies  not  coming  within 
the  classes  thus  excepted  must  be  made  directly  to 
the  Dominion  Government. 

Those  companies  which  are  incorporated  by  the  terri- 
torial government  are  licensed  to  do  business  by  the 
issue  of  letters  patent  given  by  the  lieutenant-governor 
under  a  general  enactment  known  as  "  The  Companies* 
Ordinance,"  which  is  about  the  same  thing  as  **  The 
Companies'  Act,"  of  the  Dominion  Parliament.  The 
stipulations  of  the  territorial  law  not  held  in  common 
with  that  of  the  Dominion  are  as  follows  :  - 

1.  The  number  of  applicants  for  charters  must  be  at 
least  three. 

2.  One  month's  notice  must  be  given  in  the  Terri- 
torial Gazette^  and  in  the  local  news  sheets  which  are 
published  nearest  to  the  chief  place  of  business  of  the 
company  in  the  territories. 

3.  The  petition  may  be  presented  at  any  time  within 
two  months  from  the  last  publication  of  the  notice. 


,ij 


H 


2o8 


PBBS  RBQUIRBD. 


4.  The  number  of  directors  shall  not  be  less  than 
three,  nor  more  than  nine. 

The  fees  which  the  territorial  enactment  call  for  upon 
the  issuing  of  letters  patent  or  upon  the  filing  by  a  for- 
eign corporation  of  its  charter  are  as  follows  : 

When  capital  stock  is  $400,cxx>  and  upwards,  J200 
when  capital  stock  is  $200,000  and  under  $400,000,  $1 50 
when  capital  stock  is  $100,000  and  under  $200,000,  $100 
when  capitjal  stock  is  $50,000  and  under  $100,000,  $50 
when  capital  stock  is  $40,000  and  under  $50,000,  $40 
when  capital  stock  is  $10,000  and  under  $40,000,  $30 
when  capital  stock  is  under  $10,000,  $20— in  addition  to 
advertising  charges. 

All  joint  stock  companies  and  corporations  other  than 
those  incorporated  under  it  or  by  the  Parliament  of 
Canada,  or  insurance  companies  licensed  thereby,  shall, 
before  proceeding  to  do  business  in  the  territories,  file 
in  the  office  of  the  lieutenant-governor  a  certified  copy 
of  its  charter  of  incorporation  authenticated  as  such  by 
its  president  and  secretary,  failing  in  which  said  com- 
pany shall  incur  a  penalty  of  $500,  to  be  recovered  at 
the  suit  of  the  lieutenant-governor  in  any  civil  court  in 
the  territories. 

The  public  land  laws  of  the  United  States  do  not  ap- 
ply to  Alaska,  and  neither  do  the  coal  land  regulations, 
which  are  distinct  from  the  mineral  regulations.  The 
Territory  of  Alaska  is  expressly  excluded  from  the  oper- 
ations of  the  public  land  and  coal  laws  by  provisions  of 
the  laws  themselves.  The  Hon.  Bruger  Hermann,  Com- 
missioner of  the  United  States  General  Land  Office,  has 


MINBRAT^  LAND  LAWS. 


209 


authorized  the  statement  that  the  following  laws  are  ap- 
plicable to  the  territory : 

First,  The  mineral  land  laws  of  the  United  States. 

Second.  Town-site  laws,  which  provide  for  the  incor- 
poration of  town  sites  and  acquirement  of  title  thereto 
from  the  United  States  Government  by  the  town-site 
trustees. 

Third,  The  laws  providing  for  trade  and  manufactures, 
giving  each  qualified  person  1 60  acres  of  land  in  a  square 
and  compact  form. 

The  territories  have  no  title  to  the  unappropriated 
minerals  in  the  public  lands.  Prior  to  the  Act  of  Con- 
gress of  July  26,  1866,  the  United  States  had  not  done 
anything  which  amounted  to  a  dedication  to  the  public 
of  the  minerals  in  the  public  lands.  Congress,  prior  to 
1866,  passed  some  acts  reserving  mineral  lands  from 
sale,  but  did  nothing  else  in  regard  to  the  mineral  lands. 
In  July,  1866,  a  general  act  was  passed,  throwing  open 
to  exploration  and  purchase  by  any  citizen  of  the  United 
States,  or  anyone  who  has  declared  his  intention  to  be- 
come such,  all  the  mineral  lands  in  the  public  domain. 
This  act,  in  connection  with  one  passed  the  following 
year,  created  three  distinct  classes  of  titles  :  (i)  a  title 
by  right  of  possession,  which  is  the  lowest  grade  of  title 
known  to  the  mineral  laws  ;  (2)  the  equitable  title,  which 
accrues  upon  purr^haseand  entry;  and  (3)  the  fee  simple, 
which  is  acquired  by  patent. 

The  original  act  provided  that  the  mineral  lands  should 
be  open  to  exploration  and  purchase  by  all  citizens  of  the 
United  States  and  those  who  have  declared  their  inten- 


ts 

I 


i 


••  k 


210 


RIGHT  TO  MINE. 


tion  to  become  such.  In  this  point  of  citizenship  being 
requisite  to  the  exercise  of  their  right,  there  has  been 
no  change  in  the  law. 

No  where  in  any  of  the  various  United  States  or 
State  codes  is  any  distinction  made  on  account  of  age 
or  sex,  and  the  female,  who  comes  within  the  terms  of 
the  law,  is  capable  of  making  a  valid  location  as  also  is  a 
minor. 

The  right  to  mine  can  be  given,  whether  by  State  or 
federal  laws,  only  in  public  lands.  When  the  lands  have 
become  the  property  of  an  individual,  the  government's 
right  over  them  is  gone.  '^  *    J 

There  are  in  the  United  States  three  sources  of  bind^ 
ing  regulations  as  regards  -mines  and  mining:  (i)  the 
Federal  laws,  as  enacted  by  Congress;  (2)  the  State 
and  Territorial  laws,  as  enacted  by  the  State  and  Terri- 
torial legislatures;  and  (3)  the  community  laws,  as 
enacted  by  a  miners'  meeting.  They  take  precedence 
in  the  order  named.     Up  to  1866,  all  mineral  lands  were 

held  by  virtue  of  compliance  with  the  third  class  named. 
There  were  no  absolute  titles  recognized  by  the  Govern- 
ment. In  other  words,  there  were  no  mineral  lands, 
prior  to  1866,  which  had  passed  beyond  the  control  of 
the  Government.  The  act  of  1866  gave  practical  recog- 
nition to  the  laws  of  the  miners*  community,  and  titles 
were  issued  accordingly.  The  regulations  of  the  com- 
munity are  still  recognized  as  being  official. 

The  character  of  the  mineral  lands  open  to  explora- 
tion was  not  designated  by  the  Act  of  1866,  but  in  1872 
an  act  was  passed  stipulating  that  it  must  contain  "valu- 


m 


STATUTE  PROVISIONS. 


211 


able  mineral  deposits."  Non-mineral  lands  may  be 
located  as  mill  sites,  either  in  connection  with  a  lode 
location  or  separate  therefrom,  but  only  to  the  extent  of 
ten  acres.  Mineral  lands  are  not  subject  to  entry  and 
settlement  under  the  homestead  acts.  The  statutes  de- 
fine a  placer  to  be  any  form  of  deposit,  except  veins  of 
quartz  or  other  rock  in  place.  Where  a  person  is  in 
possession  of  a  placer  claim,  which  includes  one  or  more 
lodes  or  veins,  he  must,  in  his  application  for  a  patent, 
state  that  fact,  or  the  lodes  will  be  excluded  from  his 
patent,  provided  that  they  are  known  to  exist  at  the 
time  of  such  application.  If  they  are  not  known  to  exist 
at  the  time,  then  the  patent  for  the  placer  ground  will 
convey  all  the  mineral  and  other  deposits  within  the 
boundaries  thereof.  If  made  on  surveyed  lands,  the 
location  must  conform  to  the  United  States  surveys  as 
near  as  possible  ;  bat  where  they  cannot  be  so  made,  a 
survey  and  plat  may  be  made  as  on  unsurveyed  lands. 

In  many  of  the  codes  it  is  stipulated  that  the  vein  or 
lode  must  not  only  be  located,  but  laid  bare,  exposed  to 
view,  and  this  for  some  distance  along  its  course. 

Under  the  Act  of  1866,  no  single  locator  could  claim 
more  than  two  hundred  feet  on  the  same  vein,  except 
that  an  additional  two  hundred  feet  was  allowed  to  the 
discoverer  of  the  vein,  nor  should  a  patent  issue  for  more 
than  one  vem  or  lode.  No  association  or  persons,  how- 
ever large,  could  take  up  more  than  three  thousand  feet 
on  any  one  ledge. 

Th€:  Act  of  1872,  changed  this  by  providing  that  no 
claim  located  after  that  date  should  exceed  fifteen  hun- 


212 


VAI^ID  CtAlMd. 


dred  feet  along  the  middle  of  the  vein  at  the  surface,  nor 
should  it  exceed  in  width  three  hundred  feet.  It  further 
provided  that  no  mining  regulation  should  ever  limit  the 
width  of  the  location  to  less  than  twenty-five  feet  on  each 
side  of  the  middle  of  the  vein.    - 

Most  of  the  states  and  territories  have  cut  down  the 
Federal  figures  on  the  size  of  claims  and  in  some  states, 
notably  Colorado,  they  vary  with  the  different  camp.  It 
is  not  necessary  that  the  vein  should  lie  along  the  middle 
of  the  claim.  It  is  a  miner* s  trick  to  make  the  vein 
almost  form  the  boundary  on  one  side,  and  by  so  doing 
another  vein  on  the  opposite  side  can  thus  be  brought 
within  the  boundary  of  the  claim.  •  "- 

A  valid  location  of  a  mining  claim  can  be  made  only 
when  the  ground  is  open  to  exploration  and  appropri- 
ation. Discovery  and  appropriation  are  the  sources  of 
right  and  development  the  condition  of  continued  pos- 
session. In  taking  up  a  claim  usually  one  hundred  dol- 
lars worth  of  work  must  be  done  before  the  miner  gets 
a  standing  in  the  eyes  of  the  miners'  community.  This 
amount  of  work  must  be  done  each  succeeding  year  until 
the  patent  is  granted.  This  is  supposed  to  show  his 
good  intentions.  The  digging  of  a  hole  ten  feet  deep  in 
most  settlements  is  taken  as  a  guarantee  of  good  faith. 
This  amount  of  work  done,  the  claim  can  be  recorded  on 
the  camp's  record  books.  A  year  from  this  date  must 
elapse  before  application  can  be  made  to  the  Federal 
Government  for  letters  patent.  In  the  meantime  five 
hundred  dollars  worth  of  work  must  have  been  put  in 
on  the  claim.     Application  for  letters  having  been  made 


REQUIREMENTS  BV  CONGRESS. 


2t3 


the  surveys  are  made  by  the  Federal  authorities,  and 
every  chance  given  for  contesting  the  validity  of  the 
claim  before  the  miner  enters  upon  his  undisputed  pos- 
session. )     V  .  V 

The  certificates  of  location  issued  by  the  camp  re- 
corder— an  official  elected  by  the  miners'  meeting,  are 
presumptive  evidence  of  discovery,  and  every  reasonable 
presumption  should  be  indulged  in  in  favor  of  the  integ- 
rity of  the  locations. 

All  that  is  required  by  the  acts  of  congress  is  that  the 
location  shall  be  along  the  vein  or  lode  ;  that  it  shall  be 
distinctly  marked  on  the  ground  so  that  its  boundaries 
can  be  readily  traced ;  that  the  record  shall  contain  fmch 
description  by  reference  to  some  natural  object  or  per- 
manent monument  as  will  identify  the  claim,  and  that  all 
the  lines  shall  be  parallel.  All  other  details  are  left 
to  be  governed  by  the  rules  and  regulations  of  the 
miners  in  each  district,  which  are  valid  and  effectual  if 
not  inconsistent  with  the  act  of  congress  or  any  State 
law.       '"■■'■■■'■■-  ^/'.^  '■"—    •      -     ■■   -  ,:  ■.        ■  .  ■, .. - 

The  acts  of  congress  do  not  require  that  any  notice 
shall  be  posted  on  the  claim,  only  that  one  shall  be  re- 
corded. But  all  rules  and  regulations  of  miners  and  the 
statutes  of  most  states  and  territories  do  require  the 
posting  of  such  notice  on  the  ground  as  well  as  its  record 
in  the  proper  office.  The  verification  of  the  location 
notice  must  state  the  date  of  the  location  of  the  mine. 

While  the  acts  of  congress  do  not  expressly  require  a 
record  of  a  mining  location,  they  provide  that  all  records, 
if  such  exist  or  are  required  by  any  mining  regulation, 


P    I 


M. 
f 


••* 


"    I 


214 


MINER'S  REQUIRBMBNTS. 


shall  contain  the  name  or  names  of  the  locators,  the  date 
of  the  location  and  such  description  of  the  claim  located 
by  reference  to  some  natural  object  or  permanent  monu- 
ment as  will  identify  the  claim.  As  has  been  stated,  the 
miners  in  each  district  may  enact  additional  requirements 
which  shall  nowise  infringe  on  the  laws  of  the  state  or 
nation.  In  all  mining  districts  calls  for  meetings  must 
be  signed  by  at  least  six  miners. 

It  is  further  provided  in  the  statutes  that  any  one  run- 
ning a  tunnel  for  the  development  of  a  vein  or  for  the 
discovery  of  mines,  shall  have  the  same  right  of  posses- 
sion of  all  veins  or  lodes  on  the  line  of  each  tunnel  within 
three  thousand  feet  of  the  face  thereof,  which  shall  be 
discovered  on  such  tunnel  and  which  were  not  previously 
known  to  exist,  as  if  the  discovery  was  made  from  the 
surface.  If  other  parties  shall,  while  such  tunnel  is  being 
prosecuted  with  reasonable  diligence,  locate  on  the  line 
of  such  tunnel,  any  vein  not  appearing  on  the  surface, 
such  location  shall  be  invalid.  A  failure  for  six  months 
to  prosecute  work  on  the  tunnel  constitutes  an  aband- 
onment of  all  undiscovered  veins  on  the  line  thereof 

The  question  of  abandonment  is  principally  one  of 
intention,  whether  the  ground  was  left  by  the  locator 
without  any  intention  of  returning  and  making  a  future 
use  of  it.  Forfeiture  means  the  loss  of  a  previously 
acquired  right  to  mine  certain  ground,  by  a  failure  to 
perform  certain  acts  or  observe  certain  rules,  and  differs 
from  abandonment  in  that  it  involves  no  question  of  intent 
A  failure  to  perform  the  annual  work  required  by  statute 
works  a  forfeiture  of  the  mining  claim,  and  the  same 


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SUBJECT  TO  RE-tOCATlON. 


217 


becomes  open  to  re-location,  unless  the  original  locators, 
heirs,  assigns  or  legal  representatives,  resume  work 
upon  such  claim  before  a  re-location  has  been  made.  A 
failure  to  comply  with  local  rules  or  customs  works  a 
forfeiture,  if  the  local  rules  so  provide.  To  suffer  tail- 
ings to  run  away,  without  any  effort  to  retain  or  confine 
them,  constitutes  an  abandonment  of  them. 

Where  the  owner  of  a  mining  claim  has  failed  to  com- 
ply with  the  statutory  requirements,  or  the  claim  is  for- 
feited by  reason  of  non-observance  of  any  local  rule  or 
custom,  the  same  is  subject  to  re-location. 

Any  person  may  then  enter  peaceably  upon  the  claim 
for  the  purpose  of  making  a  location  thereof,  unless  the 
original  claimant  has  resumed  work  thereon. 

A  re-location  is  made  in  the  same  manner  as  an  orig- 
inal location.  And  the  re-lccator  of  an  abandoned  min- 
ing claim  has  the  same  time  to  perform  the  acts  required 
by  law  or  custom  as  the  original  locator  had.  A  re- 
location is  an  admission  of  the  validity  of  the  original 
claim,  and  also  a  claim  of  forfeiture,  as  to  the  original 
locator.  A  party  may,  under  proper  circumstances,  re- 
locate his  own  claim,  or  that  which  he  holds  in  common 
with  others. 

Priority  of  location  confers  the  better  tide;  where  both 
parties  rely  on  possession  alone,  priority  of  possess^ion 
gives  the  better  right. 

Where  veins  intersect  or  cross  each  other,  the  prior 
locator  shall  be  entitled  to  all  ore  or  mineral  contained 
withia  tiie  space  of  intersection,  the  subsequent  locator 
being  entitled  to  a   right  of  way  through  said  space ; 


Ml 


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MT:' 


21$ 


TH^  tOCATION  UNBS. 


where  two  or  more  veins  unite,  the  oldest  location  takes 
the  vein  below  the  point  of  union,  including  all  the 
space  of  intersection. 

Those  who  have  created  a  mining  district  may  change 
its  size  or  boundaries  if  vested  rights  are  not  thereby 
affected.  A  mining  corporation  may  be  represented  at 
meetings  in  mining  districts  by  any  of  its  officers  or  its 
agents. 

One  who  has  made  location  in  accordance  with  law  is 
entitled,  so  long  as  he  complies  with  the  laws  of  the 
United  States  and  with  State,  territorial  and  local  regu- 
lations not  in  conflict  threewith,  to  the  exclusive  right  of 
possession  and  enjoyment  of  all  the  surface  included 
within  the  lines  of  his  location,  and  all  veins,  lodes  and 
ledges  throughout  their  entire  depth,  the  top  or  apex  of 
which  lies  inside  of  such  surface  lines  extended  down- 
ward vertically,  although  such  veins,  lodes,  or  ledges 
may  so  far  depart  from  a  perpendicular  in  their  down- . 
ward  course  as  to  extend  outside  of  the  side  lines  of  the 
location,  but  such  rights  shall  not  be  extended  beyond 
the  end  lines  of  the  location  projected  in  their  own  di- 
rection till  they  intersect  the  veins  or  ledges.  This  is 
called  the  apex  rule. 

Until  a  patent  issues,  the  fee  to  mineral  lands  in  the 
public  domains  remains  in  the  United  States.  But  any 
person  coming  within  the  provision  of  the  acts  of  Congress 
acquires  a  right  to  purchase  them  from  the  government 
by  complying  with  those  acts.  ^ 

The  applicant  for  a  patent  must  file  an  appl'cation 
under  oath  in  the  proper  land  oftice,  showing  a  compli- 


IN  tnn  LAND  OFI^IC^. 


219 


ance  with  the  law,  together  with  a  plat  and  field  notes, 
made  by  or  under  direction  of  the  United  States  sur- 
veyor-general, of  the  claim  or  claims,  and  shall  post  a 
copy  of  the  plat,  together  with  a  notice  of  the  applica- 
tion, on  the  land  ;  he  must  file  an  afifidavit  of  the  posting 
of  such  notice  and  a  copy  of  the  notice  itself  in  the  land 
office.  The  register  of  the  land  office  shall  post  the 
notice  in  his  office  for  sixty  days,  and  shall  publish  it 
for  the  same  period  in  the  newspaper  nearest  to  the  claim. 

The  claimant  must  also  file  with  the  register  the  sur- 
veyor-general's certificate  that  $500  worth  of  labor  has 
been  expended  or  improvements  made  upon  the  claim 
by  the  applicant  or  his  grantors. 

At  the  end  of  sixty  days  the  applicant  shall  be  entided 
to  a  patent  upon  payment  of  $5  an  acre,  if  the  claim  is 
for  a  lode  location,  and  $2.50  an  acre  if  for  a  placer  loca- 
tion, unless  during  said  sixty  days  an  adverse  claim  shall 
have  been  lodged  with  the  register  and  receiver  of  the  land 
office  in  which  the  application  is  filed ;  after  which  time 
no  objection  to  the  issuance  of  the  patent  made  by  third 
parties  shall  be  heard.  Any  adverse  claims  must  be  filed 
within  the  sixty  days,  and  must  be  under  oath  of  the 
adverse  claimant.  Thereupon  proceedings  shall  be  stayed 
until  the  controversy  shall  have  been  settled  by  a  court 
of  competent  jurisdiction. 

The  adverse  claimant  must,  within  thirty  days  after  fil- 
ing his  adverse  claim,  commence  proceedings  in  a  court 
of  competent  jurisdiction  to  determine  his  rights,  and 
prosecute  the  same,  with  reasonable  diligence,  to  find 
judgment,  or  his  claim  will  be  deemed  as  void.    The 


'**»■ 


i 


1 1  » 


230 


AN  EXCB^tlOIf. 


party  in  whose  favor  judgment  is  rendered  shall,  upon 
filing  a  copy  of  the  judgment  roll  with  the  register,  and 
complying  with  the  other  provisions  for  obtaining  a 
patent,  be  entitled  to  a  patent  for  the  claim  or  such  por- 
tion thereof  as  the  decision  of  the  court  shows  him  enti- 
tled to.  These  sections  do  not  apply  where  a  person, 
before  the  required  publication  has  gone  through  all  the 
regular  proceedings  required,  to  obtain  a  patent  for  min- 
eral land  and  has  received  his  patent. 

The  transferable  character  of  mining  locations  has 
always  been  recognized  by  the  courts  and  the  title  of  the 
grantee  enforced.  It  is  not  necessary  that  the  transfer 
should  be  in  writing,  as  a  transfer  of  the  possession  is 
sufficient,  except  in  those  States  that  have  statutes  re- 
quiring that  the  conveyance  must  have  the  same  form 
and  solemnity  as  the  conveyance  of  any  other  real 
estate.  The  patent  is  also  assignable.  There  is  no 
implied  warranty  in  the  sale  of  a  mining  claim. 

The  following  definitions  of  mining  terms  are  recog- 
nized by  the  statutes : 

Ore — Minerals  in  natural  condition. 

Lode  or  Vein — A  flattened  mass  of  metallic  or  earthy 
matter,  differing  materially  in  its  nature  from  the  rocks 
or  strata  in  which  it  occurs  ;  a  fissure  in  the  earth's  crust 
filled  with  mineral  matter,  or  aggregations  of  mineral 
matter,  containing  ores  in  fissures.  The  term,  as  used 
in  the  acts  of  Congress,  is  applicable  to  any  zone  or  belt 
of  mineralized  rock  lying  within  boundaries  clearly  sep- 
arating it  from  the  neighboring  rock.  The  words  vein, 
lode  and  ledge  are  nearly  synonymous. 


COMMON  MINING  TERMS. 


221 


A  Mine  is  a  way  or  passage  underground,  a  subter- 
ranean duct  course  or  passage,  and  is  distinguished  from 
a  "quarry,"  which  is  a  pit  wrought  from  the  surface. 

Face  of  Tunnel — This  term,  as  used  in  section  2323 
of  the  Revised  Statutes,  is  held  to  be  the  first  working 
face  formed  in  the  tunnel,  and  to  signify  the  point  at 
which  the  tunnel  actually  enters  cover. 

Location  and  Mining  Claim — These  terms  do  not 
always  mean  the  same  thing.  A  mining  claim  is  a  parcel 
of  land  containing  precious  metal  in  its  soil  or  rock.  A 
location  is  the  act  of  appropriating  such  parcel  according 
to  certain  established  rules.  But,  in  time,  the  location 
came  to  be  considered  among  miners  as  synonomous 
with  the  mining  claim  originally  appropriated.  A  mining 
claim  may  include  one  or  several  locations. 

Apex — ^The  end  or  edge  of  a  vein  nearest  the  surface. 

Level — ^The  word,  as  used  in  mining,  means  a  work- 
ing, and  is  not  necessarily  a  plane. 

Dip — The  direction  or  inclination  towards  the  depth. 

Along  the  Vein — ^Along  the  longitudinal  course  or 
strike. 

Placer  Claim — Ground  within  defined  boundaries 
which  contains  mineral  in  its  earth,  sand  or  gravel ; 
ground  that  includes  valuable  deposits  not  in  place — that 
is,  not  fixed  in  rock,  but  which  are  in  a  loose  state,  and 
may,  in  most  cases,  be  collected  by  washing  or  amalga- 
mation without  milling. 

The  act  approved  May  17,  1884,  providing  a  civil  gov- 
ernment for  Alaska,  has  this  language  as  to  mines  and 
mining  privileges ; 


I 


(« 


322 


APPLIED  TO  ALASKA. 


"  The  laws  of  the  United  States  relating  to  mining 
claims  and  rights  incidental  thereto  shall,  on  and  after 
the  passage  of  this  act,  be  in  full  force  and  effect  in  said 
district  of  Alaska,  subject  to  such  regulations  as  may  be 
made  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  and  approved  by 
the  President." 

* '  Parties  who  have  located  mines  or  mining  privileges 
therein,  under  the  United  States  laws  applicable  to  the 
public  domain,  or  have  occupied  or  improved  or  exer- 
cised acts  of  ownership  over  such  claims,  shall  not  be 
disturbed  therein,  but  shall  be  allowed  to  perfect  title  by 
payment  so  provided  for." 

In  the  Klondike  country  the  claim  is  generally  500 
feet  for  gulch  diggings  from  rimrock  to  rimrock ;  but  in 
some  gulches  not  paying  well  an  effort  is  being  made  to 
stake  claims  1,320  feet  long.  Crowded  creeks,  too,  are 
staked  300  feet  to  the  claim,  and  no  man  is  allowed  to 
stake  more  than  one  claim  in  his  own  name,  save  the 
discoverer,  who  is  allowed  i  ,000  feet. 

As  to  the  size  and  boundary  of  districts,  it  has  been 
the  custom  along  the  Yukon  to  consider  each  tributary 
stream  as  a  separate  district,  and  for  each  such  district 
one  recorder  is  elected.  He  is  paid  for  his  services  by 
the  collection  of  fees.  Formerly,  the  fee  for  each  record 
made  was  JJ5,  but  this  has  recently  bf  er*  raised  to  JS15. 


it 


CHAPTER  X. 


THE   NATIVE   POPULATION. 

Dark-skinned  People  Found  by  the  Miner  in  the  Frozen  North— Eskimo, 
Athabascan  and  Thlinget — Uncertainty  About  the  Origin  of  the' 
Innuits — The  Language  and  Customs  of  a  Curious  Race — Strange 
Modes  of  Life  Near  the  Arctic  Circle — The  Mysteries  of  the  Totem 
Pole — Dead  Houses  of  the  Stick  Indians — Miners  of  Gold  who  Knew 
the  Klondike  Field  Long  Before  the  White  Man  Entered  the  Land. 

THE  native  population  of  Alaska  has  an  interesting 
and  romantic  history,  but  much  of  it  is  shrouded 
in  a  mystery  unusual,  even  in  the  case  of  a  barbaric  and 
ignorant  race.  It  seems  probable  that  the  Innuits  are 
of  Asiatic  origin,  but  authorities  differ  on  this  point. 
Professor  Dall,  in  his  work  on  the  distribution  and  origin 
of  the  native  races  of  the  Northwestern  territory,  states 
his  belief  that  the  Alaska  Innuits  once  inhabited  the 
interior  of  America  and  that  they  slowly  retreated  to 
their  present  residence  before  the  inroads  of  Southern 
tribes. 

Mr.  L.  M.  Turner,  who  spent  many  years  among  the 
islands  of  the  Bering  Sea  and  along  the  coast,  in  his  re- 
port to  the  Smithsonian  Institute  takes  the  ground  that 
the  Innuits  or  Eskimo  are  of  the  same  race  as  the 
natives  of  Greenland,  and  he  finds  no  difificulty  in  tracing 
the  relationship. 

Professor  Otis  T.  Mason,  in  common  with  many  other 

3a| 


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i 

^il 

I  If  t 

r  i 

«' 

i  i 

i  ' 

;.t 

224 


MONGOWAN  ORIGIN  POSSIBIyE. 


^ , 


authorities,  asserts  that  the  Alaska  Innuits  are  of  Mon- 
golian origin,  as  shown  by  their  physical  as  well  as 
mental  developments. 

Dr.  Daniel  G.  Brinton,  the  well-known  authority  of 
Philadelphia,  in  commenting  on  the  last  stated  view,  says: 
"  A  favorite  theory  of  some  writers  has  been  that  they 
migrated  out  of  Asia  by  way  of  Bering  Sea,  but  those 
who  have  studied  their  culture  on  the  spot  do  not  advo- 
cate this  opinion.  These  observers  have,  without  excep- 
tion, reached  the  conclusion  that  the  Innuits  were  origi- 
nally an  inland  people,  that  their  migrations  were  toward 
the  North  and  West,  and  that  they  have  been  gradually 
forced  to  the  inhospitable  climes  they  occupy  by  the 
pressure  of  foes.  Dr.  Rink,  who  passed  many  years 
among  them,  would  look  for  their  early  home  elsewhere 
in  Alaska,  but  Mr.  John  Murdock  and  Dr.  Franz  Boas, 
two  of  our  best  authorities  on  this  tribe,  incline  to  the 
view  that  their  primal  home  was  to  the  south  of  Hudson 
Bay,  whence  they  separated  into  three  principal  hordes, 
the  one  passing  into  Labrador  and  reaching  Greenland, 
the  second  moving  to  the  Arctic  Sea  and  the  third  to 
Alaska.  These  form  respectively  the  Chiglit,  Greenland 
and  Cadjak  dialects  of  the  common  tongue." 

The  Alaska  Innuits  are,  at  this  time,  essentially  a 
maritime  and  Arctic  people,  occupying  the  coast  and 
adjacent  islands  from  the  Straits  of  Belle  Isle,  on  the 
Atlantic,  to  Icy  Bay,  at  the  foot  of  Mount  St.  Elias,  on 
the  Pacific,  and  extending  their  wanderings  and  settle- 
ments as  far  uo  as  80  degrees  north  latitude,  where  they 


ONCE  ON  THK  DELAWARE. 


225 


are  by  far  the  northernmost  inhabitants  of  the  earth. 
From  the  reports  of  the  '^  :\y  Norse  explorers,  and  from 
the  character  of  relics  found  on  the  Atlantic  Coast,  it 
does  not  seem  improbable  that  they  once  extended  as 
far  south  as  the  mouth  of  the  Delaware  River. 

In  appearance  the  Innuits  of  pure  blood  are  of  medium 
or  slightly  undersize,  dark  in  color,  the  nose  prominent 
and  sometimes  aquiline,  hair  dark  brown  or  black,  mod- 
erately strong  on  the  face,  and  the  eyes  are  dark  brown 
and  occasionally  blue.  The  skull  is  generally  long,  but 
is  sub^iect  to  extensive  variations,  ranging  from  almost 
globular  to  exceptionally  long  and  narrow  specimens. 

In  spite  of  the  hardships  of  their  life,  the  Innuits  are 
of  a  singularly  placid  and  cheerful  temperament,  good- 
natured  among  themselves  and  much  given  to  mirth  and 
laughter.  The  ingenuity  with  which  they  have  learned 
to  overcome  difficulties  of  their  situation  is  quite  sur- 
prising. In  a  country  where  wood  and  water  are  scarce, 
the  temperature  very  lew  much  of  the  time,  and  yielding 
for  them  no  edible  fruit  or  vegetable,  they  manage  to 
live  and  thrive.  Their  principal  source  of  supply  is  the 
sea.  They  build  boats  called  kayaks,  which  are  made 
from  the  bones  of  the  walrus  and  seal  skin.  Their 
winter  houses  are  of  blocks  of  snow,  laid  up  in  arch 
shape  to  form  a  dome.  In  some  instances  they  have 
been  shrewd  enough  to  form  windows  with  sheet  ice. 
These  homes  are  warmed  by  means  of  stone  lamps,  fed 
with  blubber  oil.  They  clothe  themselves  in  bird  skins 
and  furs,  and  they  show  much  skill  in  the  preparation  of 


••J 


» 


I 


226 


DOGS  ARE  PLENTIFUL. 


a  sort  of  leather.  Dogs  are  plentiful  among  the  Inn»:!:t6, 
and  are  useful  both  as  beasts  of  burden  ^nd  for  hunting. 
With  their  tools  of  bone  and  stone,  the  Indians  fashion 
many  curious  and  useful  articles,  displaying  some  invent- 
ive faculty  and  an  eye  not  wholly  devoid  of  artistic  qual- 
ities. Most  authorities  regard  their  .picture  writing  as 
far  superior  to  other  similar  work  found  north  of  Mex- 
ico, in  the  delineation  of  objects  of  all  kinds,  and  especi- 
ally in  the  matter  of  animal  forms.  . 

In  the  winter,  when  the  Indians  are  confined  much  to 
their  houses,  they  amuse  themselves  with  music  and 
song,  of  which  they  are  very  fond.  They  also  have  a 
large  stock  of  imaginative  tales  and  some  of  the  usual 
Indian  legends.  A  gifted  singer  enjoys  great  popularity, 
as  does  the  story-teller.  Some  of  the  poems  known  to- 
day among  these  Indians  are  believed  to  be  of  great 
antiquity.  As  is  the  case  with  other  tribes  of  the  Indian 
race,  their  singing  is  not  regarded  by  the  white  man  as 
melodious,  but  that  is  a  m.atter  of  opinion.  As  a  fact, 
showing  how  strong  a  hold  song  has  upon  the  hearts  of 
this  strange  tribe,  it  is  told  that  when  trouble  occurs 
between  these  individuals  or  families,  instead  of  settling 
differences  by  physical  means,  a  kind  of  singing-bee  is 
held.  An  evening  is  appointed,  and  the  aggrieved  par- 
ties sing  at  each  other  in  the  presence  of  an  invited 
audience.  At  the  close,  the  latter  decides  in  favor  of 
one  or  the  other,  and  the  verdict  ends  the  trouble. 

For  their   religion,  these  people   have  a  belief  in  a 
Supreme  being  and  in  a  great  army  of  inferior  spirits, 


THE  INNUIT  REUGION. 


227 


and  also  a  long  list  of  evil  monsters.  They  worsn.p  the 
former  and  endeavor  to  propitiate  the  latter.  They 
believe  that  each  individual  is  endowed  with  two  souls, 
one  of  which  is  irrevocably  connected  with  this  earth 
and  passes  from  father  to  son.  The  other  soul  goes  at 
death  to  either  a  good  land  within  the  earth  or  a  bad  one 
in  the  sky,  thus  reversing  the  usual  order.  The  lights 
of  the  aurora  borealis,  so  familiar  to  the  Eskimo,  are 
believed  to  be  signs  of  the  presence  of  spirits  in  the 
world  beyond.  These  people  have  authorized  priests, 
who  occupy  a  place  somewhat  similar  to  the  sorcerers 
and  conjurers  of  the  Orient.  The  language  of  these 
""'idians  is  highly  agglutinative,  the  affixes  being  joined 
CO  the  end  of  the  word.  The  verb  is  most  complex, 
having  over  3,cxx)  modified  forms,  each  one  different 
from  the  others  and  all  invariable.  It  is  like  the  Greek 
in  its  three  numbers — singular,  dual  and  plural. 

The  Aleutian  branch  of  this  race  occupies  the  long 
chain  of  islands  of  that  name.  It  is  now  a  certainty  that 
this  race  here  and  elsewhere  is  dying  out.  There  are 
now  oniy  14,000  of  them  in  Alaska,  whereas  in  the  last 
cent  •  y  the  island  district  alone  had  some  30,00c  ouls. 
St^tisii-s  show  that  the  average  number  of  children 
resul  ' -g  from  each  marriage  is  only  two,  and  it  requires 
double  tiiis  num-L>er  to  keep  a  population  stationary. 

The  Eskimo  are  by  far  the  largest  race  of  Indians  in 
Alaska,  but  there  are  also  two  other  important  tribes, 
and  these  in  turn  are  divided  into  several  classes.  The 
A  habascans,  familiarly  known  as  the  Stick  Indians,  are 


i. 


!'         It 


:^\l 


i 

'it 


I 


228 


NUMBERS  OP  TWO  TRIBBS. 


the  interior  inhabitants,  and  they  number  in  all  only 
3,439.  The  Thlingets,  numbering  4,737,  occupy  the 
southern  coast  country  for  the  most  part,  but  some  of 
them  have  followed  the  gold  seekers  to  the  interior,  as 
have  also  the  Eskimo.  *    ^    . 

The  Chilcoot  Indians,  who  pack  him  over  the  pass 
bearing  their  name,  are  but  an  offspring  of  the  Chilcats, 
one  of  the  most  powerful  of  the  Thlinget  tribe.  After 
taking  up  the  line  of  travel  down  the  lakes,  from  Lin- 
deman  to  the  Yukon,  the  miner's  only  native  companions 
are  the  Sticks.  They  p  'dominate  on  the  Yukon 
numerically  and  in  every  ot.  way,  inasmuch  as  the 
1,500  Eskimos  who  inhabit  its  basin  are  a  good  deal 
more  reserved,  and  do  not  care  so  much  for  the  white 
man's  society  or  his  gold  as  do  their  Stick  neighbors. 

A  writer  who  has  some  experience  with  these  Indian 
packers  says  of  them :  "  The  Indians  are  even  more 
capricious  and  uncertain  than  the  weather.  They  have 
been  reaping  a  harvest  for  several  years  by  packing  over 
the  pass  for  the  Yukoners,  and  they  are  very  shrewd  in 
barter,  and  they  have  naturally  come  to  know  the  value 
of  combmation  to  sustain  prices.  Members  of  other 
tribes  coming  in  to  do  packing  are  held  in  the  same 
division  as  are  '  scabs '  by  the  labor  unions  in  the  States, 
and  so  far  the  Chilcats  have  been  able  to  almost  name 
their  own  prices  for  work. 

"A  Stick  Indian,'* whose  Boston  name  is  Tom,'  as  his 
letter  of  recommendation  had  it,  came  with  his  squaw 
from*  the  interior  to  do  packing.   He  had  made  a  bargain 


A  STICK'S  SHREWDNESS. 


229 


with  the  geological  party,  who  had  waited  several  days, 
to  pack  from  Sheep  Camp  to  Lake  Lindeman  at  $9  a 
hundred  pounds,  when  the  Chilcats  held  the  price  at  $1 1. 
The  Stick  and  his  squaw  had  their  bundles  made  up  and 
were  just  ready  to  start,  and  one  of  the  white  men  was 
to  accompany  them.  A  few  other  Indians  were  standing 
around  scratching,  which  is  a  sign  of  absolute  pre- 
occupation of  mind,  and  apparently  taking  no  interest  in 
the  proceedings.  Tom  raised  his  load  to  adjust  it  to  his 
back,  and  then  suddenly  put  it  down  again.  Without  a 
word  he  took  off  his  pack  straps,  put  the  goods  back  in 
the  tent,  and  sat  down,  and  no  amount  of  questioning 
could  get  even  a  sign  out  of  him.  A  partial  explanation 
came  when,  twenty  minutes  later,  a  number  of  Chilcats 
from  over  the  pass  came  into  camp.  They  had  a  letter 
from  the  guide,  advising  the  party  to  pay  the  price  of  1 1 
cents  a  pound,  but  it  has  ever  since  been  a  puzzle  to  us 
how  Tom  got  the  word  before  the  Indians  were  within  a 
mileofus."  ,v-.r...^^:>-  — ;-       ^  -^  ^.- ■.:--. y-:-^... 

The  Thlingets,  physically,  are  a  strong  and  sometimes 
tall  people,  light  in  color,  with  black  or  slightly  reddish 
hair;  eyes  horizontal  and  aquiline  noses.  They  have 
developed  an  uncommon  appreciation  of  property,  which 
is  usually  taken  to  indicate  a  high  order  of  intellect. 
Their  aristocracy  and  the  selection  of  their  chiefs  are 
entirely  on  a  property  basis.  The  richest  obtain  the 
highest  places.  Dr.  Brinton  says  of  them  and  their 
habits:  "The  Thlinget  villages  are  permanent,  the 
houses    solidly   constructed  of  wood,  sometimes   with 


II 


w 


I      :i 


230 


THE  THUNGi$T  fiOM^ 


p 
i 


m 


the  additional  protection  of  a  palisade.  The  carving 
and  painting  upon  them  are  elaborate,  the  subjects 
being  caricatures  of  faces,  men  and  animal  forms. 
The  chiefs  erect,  at  one  side  of  their  doors,  carved  and 
painted  *  totem  posts,'  some  of  which  are  nearly  fifty 
feet  high.  Seaworthy  canoes  are  hewn  from  the  trunks 
of  the  red  cedar,  hides  are  dressed  and  the  leather 
worked  into  a  variety  of  articles ;  lamps,  mortars  and 
utensils  were  formerly  chipped  or  ground  out  of  stone, 
and  they  are  handy  in  beating  out  ornaments  of  silver 
and  copper.  The  Thlingets  have  always  been  active 
merchants,  and  when  the  first  navigators  visited  their 
villages  they  were  surprised  to  find  them  in  possession 
of  iron  knives  and  other  articles  obtained  by  trade  over 
East  Cape  or  from  the  South.  The  usual  currency  was 
the  dentalium  shell,  found  along  the  coast.  One  of  the 
staple  articles  of  trade  were  slaves.  They  were  bought 
from  the  neighboring  tribes  and  treated  with  great 
cruelty.  ^,  -h^ 

"Thlinget  mythology  is  rich,  having  a  coherent  cre- 
4.t  on  and  deluge  myth,  the  principal  figure  in  which  is 
Jelchs,  the  raven.  He  is  the  Promethean  fire-bringer, 
and  sets  free  the  sun,  moon  and  stars  from  their  prisons. 
The  religious  rites  are  in  the  hands  of  priests,  who,  as 
usual,  exert  a  great  and  injurious  influence." 

The  numerical  strength  of  this  once  powerful  tribe 
has  been  constantly  declining,  due  very  largely  to  epi- 
demics of  small-pox,  black  measles  and  grippe.  The 
eleven  tribes  of  this  race  were  estimated  by  the  Russians 


DECREASING  IN  NUMBERS. 


231 


as  numbering  25,000.  Halleck's  estimate  of  1869  puts 
the  number  at  12,000  or  15,000,  and  in  the  last  thirty 
years  they  have  been  reduced  much  more  than  half.  The 
word,  Thlinget,  is  their  name  for  "man"  or  "people." 
The  Russians  called  them  Koloschians,  from  the  Aleut 
name  Kaluska,  little  trough,  because  of  the  labrette 
worn  in  the  lower  lip.  There  are  many  legends  among 
them  of  supernatural  origin,  floods,  a  sole  surviving 
couple,  and  so  on.  They  have  no  legend  to  point  to  an 
Asiatic  origin,  as  has  been  claimed,  but  there  is  a  tradi- 
tion among  them  that  they  came  from  the  South.  Their 
propitiation  of  evil  spirits,  their  belief  in  the  transmigra- 
tion  of  souls,  their  worshipful  regard  for  the  ashes  of 
their  ancestors  and  other  customs,  would  seem  to  indi- 
cate Asiatic  origin.  Some  of  their  myths,  their  carving 
and  constructions,  as  well  as  many  of  their  words,  are 
Aino,  while  their  methods,  tools  and  postures  at  work 
are  like  the  Japanese.  The  totem  poles,  for  which  they 
are  famous,  are  like  the  New  Zealand  tiki,  and  there  are 
many  notes  of  resemblance  in  their  rites  to  those  of  the 
Maori  people.  Their  sun  and  nature  worship  with  offer- 
ings to  the  wind  and  mountains,  approach  the  Aztec  cus- 
toms. They  have  the  same  dances  and  masks  as  the 
Zunis,  and  their  totem  pole  is  also  familiar  in  the  history 
of  the  Delaware,  Omaha  and  Huron  Indians.  The 
Thlinget  people  look  down  with  contempt  on  their  Stick 
brethren. 

Totemism  is  the  base  of  the  Thlinget  social  organiza- 
tion, the  tribal  mark  or  totem  distinguishing  the  dwelling 


T 


J 


■J 


':f 


n 


i« 


It  ■* 


232 


TOTCMISM  AMONG  THE  INDIANa 


i 


and  all  other .  belongings.  Only  animal  totems  occur, 
and  they  live  under  the  guardianship  of  these  creatures 
who  are  believed  to  have  been  the  ancestors  of  the  race. 
The  crow  and  raven,  representing  the  creative  principle, 
and  the  wolf  the  fighting  agent,  are  the  great  totems  of 
the  coast,  and  each  one  is  subdivided  into  clans.  Men 
may  not  marry  women  of  their  own  totem,  that  bond 
being  stronger  than  the  one  of  the  family  or  tribe.  Men 
often  elect  individual  totems,  when  inspired  by  dreams, 
during  the  fasts  preceding  their  majority  and  initiation  into 
the  clan.  These  elective  totems  are  added  to  the  clan 
and  family  tokens,  which  accounts  for  the  storied  images 
on  the  poles.  Contrary  to  the  belief  of  many,  these 
poles  have  no  religious  significance,  and  are  not  made 
the  subject  of  idolatrous  worship.  The  designs  are  dis- 
played in  much  the  same  way  as  the  nobility  of  civiliza- 
tion parade  their  coats  of  arms. 

Thlinget  language  is  the  harshest  of  all  coast  tongues. 
Horatio  Hale  has  noted  that  these  harsh  tongues  cease 
at  the  Columbia  River,  where  the  climate  changes  so 
markedly.  The  common  speech  has  been  much  cor- 
rupted by  Russian,  English  and  Chinook.  Lieutenant 
Emmons  has  found  among  them  evidences  of  an  older 
language,  a  classic  to  all  Thlingets.  Mr.  Charles 
Walcott  notes  *'the  Japanese  idioms,  constructions, 
honorific,  separative  and  agglutinative  particles."  Like 
the  Japanese,  they  cannot  pronounce  "1,"  and  like  the 
Chinese,  they  cannot  use  the  "r."  Captain  Cook  first 
noted  the  txl  terminations  of  the  Aztec.     The  country  in 


^i[ 


m 


ar 
re 
to 
fu] 

be 

Til 
the 
res 

bo( 

are 

aqi 

am 

foil 

anc 

feir 

eld( 

intr 

siar 

piei 

mat 

whi( 

hug 

part 

P 

pain 

tinui 


THBY  UVB  IN  CANO^. 


235 


which  they  live  is  one  of  the  rainiest  parts  of  the  earth, 
and  these  people  spend  their  lives  in  canoes.  The 
result  is  seen  in  their  tongue,  which  has  been  compared 
to  the  speech  of  a  man  with  a  long-standing  cold.  It  is 
full  of  hoarse,  gutteral,  clicking  sounds,  and  the  person 
who  attempted  to  take  it  down  by  phonetic  signs  would 
be  balked  at  every  word. 

In  common  with  all  the  northwest  coast  people  the 
Thlingets  have  inherited  a  magnificent  development  of 
the  shoulders,  chest  and  arms.  This  is  undoubtedly  the 
result  of  generations  of  canoe  paddling.  The  rest  of  the 
body  is,  however,  usually  stunted  and  deformed.  They 
are  bow-legged  and  shambling  in  gait,  moving  much  as 
aquatic  birds  do  on  land.  It  has  never  been  the  custom 
among  them  to  flatten  or  elongate  the  skull,  but  they 
follow  the  barbarous  practice  of  carrying  large  nose,  lip 
and  ear  ornaments.  The  labrette  was  formerly  the 
feminine  badge  of  rank  and  age,  but  it  is  only  seen  on 
elderly  women  now.  Young  girls  are  still,  as  formerly, 
introduced  socially  at  a  certain  age,  just  as  their  Cauca- 
sian sisters  are.  The  debutante's  lower  lip  was  formerly 
pierced  and  a  copper  or  silver  pin  worn  there.  After 
marriage  the  pin  was  replaced  by  a  bone  or  wood  stud, 
which  gradually  increased  in  size  until  dowagers  '^ore  a 
huge  block,  sometimes  concealing  most  of  the  lower 
part  of  the  face. 

Painting  and  tattooing  have  been  universal.  They 
paint  at  present  only  for  dances  and  potlatches,  but  con- 
tinue to  black  their  faces  as  a  summer  protection  from 


»     i 


t 


236 


PACB  BLACKING  FORBIDDEN. 


the  sun  and  insects.  This  coating  is  a  mixture  of  seal 
oil  and  soot.  Governor  Swineford  found  it  desirable  to 
forbid  this  face  blackening,  as  it  proved  a  hiindrance  to 
the  enforcement  of  laws,  offenders  thereby  hiding  their 
identity.  There  are  sometimes  notable  exceptions  to 
the  regulation  heavy,  flat  jaws  and  high  cheeked  faces. 
Some  of  the  women  show  istrong  faces  of  more  regular 
mould.  Woman  is  the  family  arbiter  and  indeed  is 
supreme  in  every  way,  the  family  possessions  descend- 
ing through  her.  Polygamy  is  quite  commonly  practiced. 
Upon  a  man's  death  his  widows  pass  to  the  oldest  male 
in  his  mother's  family.  Younger  brothers  and  nephews 
arc  allowed  to  escape  the  widows  if  they  so  desire  by 
paying  a  good  round  sum  in  blankets. 

The  Thlingets  have  their  political  societies.  All  of  the 
same  totem  contribute  to  the  potlatches  of  their  chief, 
working  sometimes  for  years  to  make  an  extravagant 
display.  The  potlatch  is  usn^lly  given  at  the  full  of  the 
moon,  and  the  host's  clan  and  totem  do  not  accept  gifts. 
The  seating  and  serving  of  guests  is  as  precisely 
arranged  as  at  the  dinner  of  a  diplomat.  Hospitalities 
are  invariably  returned  in  kind.  They  are  inveterate 
dancers,  and  songs  and  dramatic  representations  go 
with  everything  from  a  feast  to  a  funeral.  They  have 
many  games  of  chance,  the  favorite  being  a  fan-tan 
played  with  fifty-two  cylindrical  sticks  differently  marked. 
The  sticks  are  either  drawn  and  matched,  or  players 
guess  the  number,  position  and  odd  or  even  of  those  the 
dealer  hides  under  a  mass  of  cedar  shreds.  The  dealer 
and  players  join  in  a  chant 


W  } 


n 


CURING  THE  SICK. 


237 


In  illness  the  Thlinget  sends  for  his  shaman  or  medi- 
cine man,  who,  continuing  his  fasts  alone  in  the  forests 
throughout  life,  continues  to  receive  inspiration  from  his 
guardian  spirit.  He  uses  chants  and  other  means  for 
curing.  The  missionaries  have  done  much  to  stop  the 
old  practice  of  cremation  of  the  dead.  Many  of  the 
tribes  have  long  known  the  art  of  forging  copper,  and 
gold  and  silver  are  plentiful  among  them. 

The  Athabascan  or  Stick  Indians,  of  the  interior,  rank 
intellectually  below  their  neighbors.  Their  temperament 
is  inclined  to  be  gloomy  and  morose  and,  in  spite  of  their 
apparent  stolidity,  they  are  much  given  to  panics  and 
temporary  hallucinations.  Their  chiefs  are  chosen  with- 
out formality,  either  on  account  of  their  daring  in  war 
or  for  the  number  of  presents  the}  distribute.  Their 
entire  number  scattered  over  the  Yukon  and  Klondike 
countries  is  only  3,439.  They  make  excellent  bark 
canoes  and  a  few  implements.  They  have  come  much 
in  contact  with  the  miner  of  late  years  and  have  caught 
the  gold  fever.  Many  of  them  are  engaged  in  either 
helping  the  white  miners  or  digging  for  gold  themselves 
in  a  desultory  way.  -  -   ^   . 

Some  of  the  dead  houses  of  the  Sticks  are  exceed- 
ingly ornate  with  glass  windows  and  some  fanciful 
touches  in  carved  and  painted  woodwork.  The  Sticks 
of  the  upper  Yukon  are  cremationists,  but  are  not  very 
thorough  in  their  work,  as  they  want  enough  of  the 
remains  left  to  hold  a  satisfactory  funeral  over.  Farther 
down  the  river  the  Indians  are  growing  out  of  the  cus- 


ii 


I    I 


Ii 


m 


r/iM 


238 


CURIOUS  FUNERAI,  CUSTOMS. 


torn  of  cremating  their  dead.  The  Tinnehs  of  the  mid- 
dle Yukon  bury  their  dead  off-hand  in  a  coffin  in  a  shal- 
low grave,  over  which  they  then  plant  a  tamarack  tree. 
The  roots  of  the  tree  encircle  the  coffin  like  the  grasp  of 
a  hand,  and  are  supposed  to  protect  it  against  the  rav- 
ages of  wild  beasts.  The  Eskimos  place  their  departed 
ones  in  a  rude  box  and  then  cover  it  over  with  a  pile  of 
stones,  but  usually  this  safeguard  is  not  effective,  and 
the  ultimate  casket  of  the  deceased  Eskimo  is  the  polar 
bear  that  has  jurisdiction  over  the  district.  The  shamans, 
or  medicine  men,  of  the  Eskimos,  are  allowed  to  choose 
their  burial  places,  a  privilege  that  is  not  accorded  to 
every  one,  and  they  select  ingeniously  difficult  places  of 
access  that  their  final  sleep  may  be  undisturbed  ;  as,  for 
instance,  a  rocky  pinnacle,  which  can  only  be  reached  by 
their  devoted  followers  at  the  imminent  risk  of  their 
lives  in  carrying  out  the  request. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


I 


RESOURCES   OF   ALASKA. 

President  Johnson's  "  ice-box  " — Thirty-five  years  of  Alaskan  exports — Dense  forests 
of  spruce,  cedar  and  pine — United  States  Department  of  Agriculture's  Experi- 
mental station — Alaskan  flora — Cranberries  and  other  berries — Grain  and 
grass  growing — Bituminous  coal — Marble — Big  game  of  the  interior — Bears 
the  one-time  terror  of  the  Klondike — Foxes  and  other  fur-coated  Animals — 
The  deer  and  their  threatened  extinction — Salmon  six  feet  deep — The  cod 
banks — Whaling. 

TIME  alone  can  demonstrate  the  full  magnitude  of 
Alaska's  resources.  When  it  first  came  under  the 
jurisdiction  of  the  United  States,  it  was  generally  believed 
that  the  dictates  of  diplomacy  and  statecraft  were  alone 
responsible  for  its  purchase,  and  few  there  were  who 
imagined  that,  before  the  century  had  run  its  course, 
Alaska  would  have  paid  for  itself  many  times  over.  It 
was  even  suggested  to  President  Johnson  that  he  visit 
"this  land  of  snow  and  merchantable  ice."  During  the 
first  five  years  of  our  possession,  it  made  a  return  of  eight 
per  cent,  on  the  investment.  The  two  tiny  Seal  Islands 
paid  four  per  cent,  on  the  original  $7,200,000,  and  in  their 
first  lease  returned  a  sum  equal  to  the  purchase  money  to 
the  Treasury.  The  gold  mines,  not  including  that  taken 
out  this  year,  have  produced  over  $8,000,000,  and  in  six 
years,  1884  to  1890,  the  salmon  industiy  yielded  $7,500,- 
000.  The  commerce  of  Alaska,  in  1867,  was  reported  to 
be  $2,500,000 ;  it  is  now  ten  times  as  great.  In  seals 
this  country  has  received  $35,000,000  in  thirty  years  from 

(239) 


i 


ir 


I  ;l 


II' 


*■» 


240  INDUSTRIES. 

its  northwestern  dominions.  These  figures  show  what  a 
tremendous  factor  Alaska  is  in  the  world's  game  of  barter 
and  trade.  The  industries  thus  far  developed  pertain 
mostly  to  the  coast,  but  with  the  opening  up  of  the  Yukon 
country  to  the  outside  world,  great  things  are  naturally 
to  be  expected  from  that  quarter.  The  following  table 
gives  in  a  concise  form  very  close  figures  on  the  value  of 
the  eight  leading  Alaskan  exports  since  the  Territory 
passed  into  the  hands  of  the  United  States: 

Furs i ^53, 000,000 

Canned  Salmon , 10,000,000 

Whalebone 10,000,000 

Gold  and  Silver 6,000,000 

Whale  Oil 3,000,000 

Codfish 1,600,000 

Salted  Salmon ,, 800,000 

Ivory 160,000 

In  this  table  the  gold  exports  do  not  include  the  pro- 
duct of  this  year's  mining. 

The  day  is  not  far  distant  when  the  Alaskan  lumber 
rejjions  will  be  famous.  It  is  estimated  that  the  available 
timber  now  standing  in  the  Territory  might  alone  meet 
the  ordinary  demand  of  this  continent  for  half  a  century. 
Though  the  extreme  northern  part  of  Alaska  is  treeless, 
its  southern  shores,  both  of  the  islands  and  the  mainlands, 
are  covered  with  a  dense  forest  growth,  the  Aleutian 
group  excepted.  ^^ 

Southeastern  Alaska  is  well  timbered,  the  prevailing 
varieties  being  spruce  and  hemlock,  red  and  yellow  cedar, 
maple  and  birch.  The  spruce  and  hemlock  found  Ir-ue 
are  usually  of  large  size,  often  a  hundred  feet  high  and 


TIMBER  LANDS. 


241 


six  and  eight  feet  in  diameter.  Yellow  cedar  trees  eight 
feet  in  diameter  have  been  cut  in  the  southeastern  por- 
tion of  Alaska.  It  must  certainly  be  a  cedar  of  magnifi- 
cent proportions  out  of  which  the  nadve  Haidas  can  hew 
and  construct  a  canoe  seventy  feet  long,  capable  of  carry- 
ing one  hundred  men. 

This  wood  is  a  beautiful  variety,  admitting  of  high 
polish  and  especially  adapted  for  the  manufacture  of  fur- 
niture. The  yellow  cedar  is  fine  for  ship-building,  and  is 
torredo-proof;  that  is,  it  is  impervious  to  that  marine 
pest  known  as  the  boring  worm.  It  may  easily  take  the 
place  of  mahogany  and  other  tropical  and  sub-tropical 
woods.  The  yellow  cedar  grows  many  feet  in  height, 
straight  and  clear,  without  any  defect  whatsoever.  The 
wood,  when  polished,  presents  a  beautiful  yellowish  hue 
and  is  hard  and  compact,  though  easily  worked.  Little  is 
known  of  the  extent  of  the  yellow  cedar  in  the  interior, 
but  no  doubt  explorations  will  discover  considerable 
areas  of  this  valuable  wood. 

These  virgin  forests  of  Alaska,  which  have  never  felt 
the  stroke  of  a  white  man's  axe,  ar*  ^uly  magnificent. 
They  present  a  growth  exceedingly  denst:  and  peculiar,  the 
branches  of  the  tall  trees  being  often  draped  with  Ion pf 
black  and  white  moss,  dry  and  fine  as  hair,  which  it  resem- 
bles. This  characteristic  is  similar  to  the  effect  pioduced 
by  the  Spanish  moss  in  the  thick  woods  of  Louisiana.  I  he 
fallen  trees  and  stumps  in  these  Alaskan  forests  are  cov- 
ered with  a  bright  green  moss  ten  inches  in  thickness,  anr' 
in  the  tangle  of  creeping  vines  are  seen  the  deep  red  clus- 


^ 


I 


I 


» 


»' 


242 


VARIOUS  KINDS. 


ters  of  the  bunchberry.  Good  judges  say  the  timber  is 
as  fine  in  quality  as  that  of  Oregon  and  Washington. 

From  Sitka  westward  the  forests  become  scrubby  and 
the  timber  small  in  size,  but  alder  and  willow  are  found  in 
many  places.  The  timber  line  extends  to  a  height  of  about 
1,500  feet.  The  timber  along  the  lower  portion  of  the 
Yukon  is  composed  principally  of  willow,  alder  and  Cot- 
tonwood. Towards  Norton  Sound  it  grows  to  a  fair  size. 
Spruce  is  also  found,  as  a  rule,  on  most  streams  empty- 
ing into  the  Yukon  River  and  Behring  Sea.  The  rivers 
entering  the  Arctic  as  far  north  as  latitude  sixty-seven 
degrees  are  more  or  less  timbered  with  the  same  variety. 
Along  Wood  River  there  are  some  fine  groves  of  large 
spruce  timber,  and  back  in  the  interior,  and  along  the 
banks  of  the  rivers  on  level  stretches  of  country,  fir 
timber  is  also  found  to  a  considerable  extent.  Dwarf 
spruce,  Cottonwood,  alder  and  willow  are  also  found  in 
the  Nashagak  and  Kuskoqum  regions.  The  willow  usu- 
ally found  along  the  coast  west  of  Mt.  St.  Elias  is  scrubby, 
but  in  the  moraines  of  that  mountain  and  along  the  delta 
of  the  Copper  River  it  grows  to  a  height  of  fifteen  feet  or 
even  higher.  In  the  vicinity  of  the  Noatuk  River,  in 
latitude  sixty-seven  degrees  north,  spruce,  birch,  and 
Cottonwood  are  found  of  a  stunted  growth,  fit  only  for 
firewood  and  the  construction  of  log-houses.  The  spruce 
which  is  found  near  running  water  is  usually  good 
sized  and  vigorous. 

It  attains  not  unfrequently  the  height  of  fifty  to  one 
hundred  feet,  with  a  diameter  of  over  three  feet  near  the 
butt ;  but  the  most  common  size  is  thirty  or  forty  feet,  and 


PREVAILING  VANITY. 


243 


twelve  to  eighteen  inches  at  the  butt.  It  is  quite  durable. 
Many  houses,  twenty  years  old,  built  of  this  timber,  when 
examined  were  found  to  contain  a  majority  of  sound 
logs;  when  used  green,  without  proper  seasoning,  it  will 
not  last  over  fifteen  years.  These  trees  decrease  in 
size  and  grow  more  sparingly  near  Fort  Yukon,  but  are 
still  large  enough  for  most  purposes. 

Several  kinds  of  poplar  are  to  be  found  in  Alaska.  But 
as  timber,  it  has  little  value;  the  extreme  softness  of 
the  wood  is  often  taken  advantage  of  by  the  natives 
with  their  rude  iron  or  stone  axes,  to  make  small  boards 
or  other  articles  for  use  in  their  lodges.  They  also  rub 
up  with  charcoal  the  down  from  the  seed-pods  for  tinder. 

In  the  Yukon  country,  from  Five  Fingers  all  the  way 
to  Koserefski  Mission,  the  timber  growing  along  the 
banks  is  willow,  alder,  and  spruce,  the  latter  being 
the  prevailing  variety.  It  is  generally  scrubby,  but 
many  good-sized  trees  are  to  be  found.  The  islands 
in  the  river  from  Five  Fingers  to  the  mouth  are  generally 
well-timbered,  the  larger  islands  being  better  wooded 
than  the  mainland. 

The  Alaskan  timber  lands  are,  for  the  most  part, 
quite  convenient  to  the  numerous  fine  harbors  which 
line  the  coast,  and  where  ships  could  be  readily  loaded. 
The  lumber  exports  for  1885  amounted  to  $50,000. 

As  far  as  definite  information  goes  but  little  can  be 
said  about  Alaska's  future  as  a  grain-growing,  farm- 
ing, and  gardening  country. 

The  United  States  Government,  authorized  by  a  special 
act  of  Congress,  sent  out  during  the  past  summer,  an 


If 


I 


3< 


244 


EXPERIMENT  STATIONS. 


expedition  whose  object  is  to  gather  preliminary  data 
with  reference  to  the  contemplated  establishment  of  one 
or  more  agricultural  experiment  stations  in  that  Arctic 
province.  Congress  has  appropriated  $5,000  to  pay  for 
the  investigation,  and  under  existing  law  an  institution  of 
this  sort  would  be  entitled  to  a  subsidy  of  $15,000  per 
annum  from  the  government. 

Botanist  Allen,  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture,  and 
Dr.  Killen,  of  the  Oregon  Agricultural  College,  with  one 
or  two  others,  compose  the  party.  They  will  make 
a  tour  through  the  Sitkan  region,  and  the  Aleutian  chain, 
looking  for  the  most  favorable  place  for  the  establish- 
ment of  an  experimental  station.  They  will  pay  partic- 
ular attention  to  the  great  island  of  Kadiak,  which  is  of 
such  size,  ninety  miles  long  by  sixty  brocid  that  alone  it 
might  be  a  granary  for  the  whole  of  Alaska.  Two-thirds 
of  it  is  treeless,  and  the  fertility  of  the  soil  is  evidenced 
by  the  extraordinary  luxuriance  of  the  grasses  with  which 
its  hills  are  covered.  This  wealth  of  wild  grasses  is  equal 
to  anything  that  can  be  seen  on  the  prairies  of  Iowa  or 
Minnesota. 

The  expedition  will  choose  a  location  for  at  least  one 
experimental  station.  When  once  it  is  started,  the  work 
of  the  establishment  will  be  of  a  very  elaborate  and 
comprehensive  description.  It  will  be  scientific  farming, 
conducted  with  a  view  to  finding  out  how  the  conditions 
of  the  region  may  be  utilized  to  best  advantage  for  the 
production  of  every  possible  field  and  garden  crop.  But 
this  is  not  all,  for  it  is  desired  to  learn  what  domestic 
animals  may  be  reared  to  advantage  in  Alaska.    At  the 


NO  DOMESTIC  ANIMALS. 


245 


present  time  there  are  practically  no  domestic  animals 
in  the  territory,  though  the  country  is  well  adapted  for 
sheep,  pigs,  and  goats,  and  in  the  Sitkan  region,  as  well 
as  on  the  islands  of  the  Aleutian  chain,  catde  will  keep 
fat  all  the  year  around  widiout  much  care,  subsisting  on 
the  nutritious  sfrasses.  Further  to  the  north  it  would  be 
necessary  to  give  them  shelter  during  two  or  three 
months  of  severest  winter  weather.  Poultry  can  be 
raised  to  great  advantage  in  Alaska. 

In  short,  Alaska  is  believed  to  be  a  country  of  great 
agricultural  possibilides.  The  coastal  belt  and  the  low- 
lands of  the  Yukon  region  are  covered  as  soon  as  spring 
arrives  with  a  luxuriant  growth  of  grass  and  flowers. 
Among  the  most  valuable  grasses  is  the  familiar  Ken- 
tucky blue  grass,  which  grows  as  far  north  as  Kotzebue 
Sound,  and  another  is  the  blue-joint  grass,  reaching  four 
or  five  feet  in  height.  These  make  most  excellent  forage. 
Barley  has  been  tried  at  Port  Yukon  in  small  patches,  and 
has  matured,  though  the  straw  was  short.  Rye  and  bar- 
ley ought  to  succeed,  inasmuch  as  these  grains  are  grown 
in  very  high  ladtudes  in  Europe.  The  Island  of  Kadiak 
is  in  the  same  latitude,  with  tem.perature  and  rainfall 
about  equal,  as  a  part  of  Scotland  which  produces  much 
barley  and  rye.  Oats  are  hardy  and  will  grow  very  far 
north. 

The  growth  of  plants  in  that  far  northern  region  is 
astonishingly  rapid.  The  snow  has  hardly  disappeared 
before  a  mass  of  herbage  has  sprung  up,  and  spots  which 
a  few  days  before  presented  nothing  but  a  white  sheet 
are  teeming  with  vegetation,  producing  leaves,  flowers 


I 


^f 


11 


s 


fi^ 


m 


246  ALMOST  TROPICAL  LUXURIANCE. 

and  fruit  in  quick  succession.  Indeed,  during  the  short 
and  hot  summer  the  vegetation  attains  an  almost  tropi- 
cal luxuriance.  Every  plant  is  rushed  as  fast  as  possible 
to  a  ripening,  in  order  that  its  seeds  may  be  produced 
before  the  early  frosts  of  autumn  nip  it.  Plants,  of  course, 
are  accustomed  in  temperate  latitudes  to  sleep  at  night, 
and  it  is  interesting  to  observe  that  the  vegetation  of 
Arctic  Alaska  pursues  a  similar  habit  for  so  many  hours 
in  each  twenty-four,  even  though  the  sun  is  in  the 
heavens  for  months  together  without  sinking  below  the 
horizon,  the  somnolence  being  marked  by  drooping 
leaves.  ^ 

A  singular  phenomenon  is  observed  on  the  shores  of 
Escholtz  Bay,  in  Kotzebue  Sound,  where  bluffs  of  solid 
ice  thirty  to  sixty  feet  in  height  are  covered  with  a  layer 
of  soil  in  which,  to  use  the  words  of  the  famous  botanist. 
Dr.  Seeman,  '•  herbs  and  shrubs  are  flourishing  with  a 
luxuriance  only  equalled  in  more  favored  climes."  One 
question  to  be  investigated  by  the  Alaskan  experiment 
station  will  relate  to  the  modifications  of  the  rules  of  ordi- 
nary agriculture,  which  must  be  made  to  suit  the  latitude. 
Such  modifications  are  adopted  in  Finland,  which  is  so 
wet  that  the  grass  has  to  be  transformed  into  hay  by  let- 
ting the  wind  blow  through  it. 

There  are  practically  no  tree  fruits  suitable  for  food  in 
Alaska,  though  a  wild  crab-apple  is  found  in  the  Sitkan 
region,  but  small  fruits  grow  spontaneously  in  greater 
profusion  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  world.  There  are 
wild  strawberries  of  exceptional  size  ;  also  red  and  black 
currants^  gooseberries,  cranberries,  raspberries,  blueber- 


^ 


BERRIES  IN  ABUNDANCE. 


247 


ries,  bearberries,  dewberries,  mossberries  and  roseberries. 
The  last  are  the  ffuit  of  a  species  of  rose  called  Rosa 
Cinnamomea.  Wild  roses  quite  generally  produce  fruits, 
which  in  some  cases  are  edible,  but  the  cultivated  varieties 
are  "  doubled "  to  such  an  extent  as  to  petals  that  the 
flowers  are  rarely  fertilized.  From  many  of  the  ber- 
ries the  Russians  prepare  most  piquant  and  delicious 
preserves.  Already  the  Alaskan  cranberries  are  being 
brought  in  large  quantities  to  the  San  Francisco  market, 
being  purchased  by  traders  from  the  natives,  who  pick 
them. 

These  cranberries  are  bright  scarlet  in  color,  and  about 
the  size  of  a  pea.  They  are  highly  prized  by  the  Alaskan 
Indians,  who  depend  to  a  considerable  extent  on  these 
and  other  berries  for  food.  The  shrubs  that  bear  blue- 
berries form  a  large  part  of  the  forest  undergrowth  in 
the  low  country,  and  the  fruit  is  collected  in  great  quanti- 
ties by  nati'  *'s,  who  preserve  the  berries,  crushing  and 
drying  them.  The  salmonberry,  the  fruit  of  a  spreading 
bush,  is  likewise  much  esteemed.  It  has  the  shape  of  a 
red  raspberry,  and  is  an  inch  long.  The  Indians  crush  it 
in  a  wooden  bowl,  and  eat  it  with  seal  oil.  This  is  one 
of  the  oldest  gastronomic  practices  of  the  natives,  who 
regard  seal  oil  as  the  natural  accompaniment  of  pretty 
nearly  everything  edible.  They  even  eat  strawberries 
with  seal  oil,  as  we  would  put  sugar  on  them. 

When  small  fruits  grow  wild  in  such  surprising  abun- 
dance, it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  they  might  be 
cultivated  successfully.  This  is  one  of  the  problems  to 
be  taken  up  by  the  experts,  who  may  be  placed  in  charge 


I 


!i 

i 


I. 


hi 


248 


THE  PROBI^EM  OF  CULTIVATION. 


of  the  experiment  station.  They  will  try  to  find  out  how 
the  fruits  and  vegetables  also  may  best  be  preserved  for 
winter  use.  The  production  of  eggs,  butter,  and  cheese 
will  demand  attention  at  their  hands.  Nothing  could  be 
more  absurd  than  the  present  fact  that  the  people  who 
are  pouring  into  Alaska  are  obliged  to  bring  their  food 
with  them,  because  tiie  country  will  not  yield  them  a  sup- 
port. They  are  actually  obliged  to  fetch  what  they  need 
to  eat  from  San  Francisco  or  from  Puget  Sound.  It  is 
all  because  the  resources  of  the  country  are  undeveloped. 
Dr.  Dall  says  that  within  a  century  from  the  present  time 
Alaska  will  be  exporting  great  quantities  of  ship  timber, 
butter,  cheese,  wool,  mutton,  and  beef.  Very  likely  her 
berries  will  find  a  wide  demand. 

Turnips  and  radishes  flourish  in  Southern  Alaska. 
Potatoes  do  well,  though  the  tubers  do  not  attain  a  great 
size.  Cabbages  do  not  "  head."  Lettuce  is  successfully 
grown,  though  it  does  not  ripen  seed.  The  turnips,  above 
referred  to,  reach  a  weight  of  five  or  six  pounds,  and 
have  an  excellent  flavor ;  the  Russians  preserve  the  tops 
in  vinegar  for  winter  use.  Wild  peas  grow  in  abundance 
on  the  Aleutian  Islands.  Along  the  coast  of  the  mainland 
to  the  northwest  of  Sitka,  and  on  some  of  the  islands  off 
shore,  all  of  the  cereals  except  corn  can  be  grown  to  per- 
fection. Kadiak,  Afognak,  and  other  islands  possess  a 
most  fertile  soil,  with  a  milder  and  more  equable  climate 
than  that  of  the  Western  States.  Wild  timothy  grows 
lujfuriantly  in  Southeast  Alaska.  There  are  large  areas 
of  excellent  grazing  lands,  notably  on  the  great  islands 
of  the  Kadiak  and  Aleutian  archipelagoes.    There  is  no 


FERTILB  SOIL  OF  THE  ISLANDS. 


249 


reason  why  Alaska  should  not  rival  Montana  or  Wyom- 
ing in  the  raising  of  stock.  All  along  the  coast  millions 
of  cattle  and  sheep  might  subsist  on  the  wild  grasses, 
with  a  much  less  percentage  of  loss  from  winter  cold 
than  in  the  western  part  of  the  United  States,  the  climate 
being  far  milder  and  more  equable.  Indeed,  the  climaie 
of  the  Sitkan  and  Aleutian  regions  is  not  more  severe 
than  that  of  Maryland  or  Virginia,  and  exhibits  fewer 
vicissitudes. 

On  the  Upper  Yukon  the  summer  climate  is  delight- 
ful. In  that  region  there  is  much  arable  land,  with  a  soil 
from  which  farm  and  garden  products  of  nearly  every 
kind  can  be  obtained.  During  the  last  spring  and  sum- 
mer there  were  eighty-five  days  of  "growing  weather" 
in  that  country — equal  to  at  least  1 20  days  in  the  latitude 
of  Ohio  and  Indiana,  the  sun  shining  throughout  the 
twenty-four  hours. 

The  most  extensive  efforts  at  gardening  of  all  places 
in  the  interior  have  been  carried  on  at  Fort  Selkirk  for 
several  years.  Here  they  have  raised  potatoes,  cabbage, 
turnips,  and  other  vegetables.  They  have  to  irrigate  the 
gardens  to  some  extent  by  pumping  water  from  the  river, 
and  it  is  necessary  to  blanket  the  plants  early  and  also 
late  in  the  season.  For  probably  six  weeks  of  mid- 
summer the  latter  protection  is  not  necessary.  The  soil 
is  very  fertile,  and  produces  better  after  two  or  three 
years'  cultivation.  Although  much  care  is  entailed  in 
raising  a  garden  crop  on  the  Yukon,  it  pays  very  well, 
as  potatoes  are  easily  worth  $10  a  bushel  at  any  season 


I! 


f 


it 


2  CO  CROPS  WHICH  PAY. 

of  the  year.     The  potatoes  grow  to  fair  size,  and  an  acre 
will  produce  two  hundred  bushels. 

Omer  Maris,  who  has  spent  a  great  deal  of  time  in 
various  parts  of  Alaska,  has  this  to  say  as  to  the  present 
condition  of  agriculture  in  the  territory : 

"  The  biggest  real  practical  farm  that  I  have  seen  is 
about  60  by  loo  feet  in  size,  but  the  owner  of  it  is  pro- 
gressive, and  is  taking  another  strip  fully  as  large ;  but 
in  spite  of  his  limitations  it  is  said  his  sales  already  this 
season  amount  to  hundreds  of  dollars,  and  the  appear- 
ance of  his  lettuce  and  onion  beds  would  seem  to  justify 
the  statement. 

"  Up  to  this  time  there  had  never  seemed  any  excuse 
for  farming  here.  For  the  last  few  years  grain  and  all 
kinds  of  produce  have  been  very  cheap  on  Puget  Sound 
and  in  California.  The  shipping  rates  do  not  add  very 
materially  to  the  cost,  and  consequently  food  has  been 
cheaper  and  more  abundant  than  in  the  Eastern  States. 
This,  coupled  with  the  fact  that  wages  have  always  ruled 
high,  has  made  farming  impracticable.  The  ^Jn\y  oppor- 
tunity at  present  seems  to  be  in  the  few  garden  products 
that  will  not  stand  a  voyage  of  a  week  or  two.  If  the 
necessity  should  ever  arise,  however,  the  country  might 
certainly  be  made  to  produce  about  everything  that  is 
required,  with  the  exception  of  grain. 

"  It  is  true  that  clearing  the  ground  would  be  an  almost 
desperate  undertaking.  To  accomplish  it  in  a  season  or 
two  would  be  like  mining,  for  something  like  four  feet 
solid  of  big  logs  and  wreckage  would  have  to  be  removed, 
and,  unlike  a  similar  undertaking  in  the  States,  it  would 


n 


i 


i 


DIFFICULTY  ABOUT  CLEARING. 


2^53 


•2 


'J 
x 

■< 


not  be  practical  to  burn  it.  But  the  land  will  not  always  be 
incumbered  in  that  way.  It  will  take  many  years  to  make 
a  considerable  showing,  but  it  will  naturally  follow  the 
cutting  of  the  timber  for  lumber  and  fuel.  The  obvious 
rotation  will  be  lumber-cutting,  grazing  and  farming  in 
the  order  named. 

"  Grass  grows  wherever  the  sun  shines,  and  it  is  a  kind 
of  forage  that  cattle  thrive  exceedingly  well  on.  As  a 
practical  instance,  a  dairyman  took  up  a  claim  of  twenty 
acres  north  of  Juneau,  where  the  timber  had  all  been  cut 
off.  His  cows  make  their  way  among  the  stumps  and 
logs,  and  find  plenty  to  eat.  When  the  sun  is  let  in,  the 
wood  decays  rapidly,  so  in  a  few  years  the  patient  dairy- 
man will  have  a  smooth,  clear  tract  of  land  without  any 
heart-breaking  effort.  Though  the  soil  is  as  fertile  as  is 
any  in  the  world,  it  has  been  demonstrated  that  it  im- 
proves in  productiveness  with  a  few  seasons'  cultivation. 

"  A  few  years  ago  a  man  started  a  cattle  ranch  at  the 
mouth  cf  Lemon  Creek.  There  is  a  fine  expanse  of 
several  hundred  acres  of  tide-flats  that  produced  grass 
of  wonderful  growth  and  quality.  He  brought  in  a  herd 
of  cattle  that  made  good  growth  during  the  summer 
season.  Nearly  all  new  fields  for  enterprise  have  to  go 
through  an  experimental  stage,  which  generally  entails 
more  or  less  disappointment  In  this  case  the  obstacle 
encountered  was  in  the  curing  of  the  hay.  The  season 
was  wet  at  cutting  time,  the  grass  would  not  dry,  and 
cciisequently  spoiled.  On  this  account  the  project  was 
not  regarded  as  feasible,  and  the  cattle  were  disposed  of 
at  the  approach  of  winter.     Since  then  there  have  been 


#  «i 


[ 


t 


^54 


THE  SILO  SHOULD  BE  USED. 


more  favorable  seasons,  and  a  good  deal  of  hay  has  beett 
successfully  cured.  It  has  been  found,  however,  that  a 
surer  way  to  save  the  forage  is  in  a  silo.  Later  experi- 
ments have  been  made  in  that  direction,  and  ensilage  is 
regarded  as  the  most  dependable  winter  food  for  stock.:. 

"At  Wrangel  there  have  been  several  attempts  made  at 
raising  apples,  but  for  climatic  reasons  they  were  unsuc- 
cessful. The  trees  did  not  live.  It  is  possible  that  other 
and  hardier  varieties  may  yet  succeed.  The  Alaskan 
coast  is  the  greatest  of  berry  countries.  Wild  straw- 
berries are  as  prolific  and  fine  in  quality  as  the  best  culti- 
vated varieties  in  the  States.  There  are  kinds  of  small 
fruits  here  that  are  not  found  anywhere  else.  Among 
the  products  of  the  country  that  grow  wild  in  great  pro- 
fusion are  salmonberries  and  huckleberries,  wild  black 
currants,  and  high-bush  cranberries.  The  Indians  gather 
great  quantities  of  the  cranberries,  and  put  them  up— 
or  down — in  seal  oil — a  valuable  suggestion  for  ambitious 
compilers  of  original  bills  of  fare.  There  are  also  sarvis- 
berries,  blueberries,  thimbleberries,  and  another  fruit 
very  like  a  dewberry,  that  grows  singly  on  a  little  annual 
vine  like  a  potato  plant." 

The  coal  resources  of  Alaska  are  lying  dormant  be- 
cause tlie  time  does  not  seem  to  have  arrived  for  the 
necessity  of  the  opening  up  of  the  mines.  A  number  of 
small  veins  or  seams  have  been  found  on  several  of  tike 
islands  in  the  Southeastern  Alaskan  country.  Those 
which,  perhaps,  so  far  have  attracted  the  most  attention 
are  on  Chicagoflf  Island,  near  Killisnoo,  where  every  in- 
dication promises  an  extensive  deposit     All  the  coal 


PETROLEUM  DEPOSITS. 


255 


found  in  Alaska  is  bituminous,  and  of  a  very  good  qual- 
ity. Deposits  have  been  found  on  the  headwaters  of  the 
Chilkat  River,  Lituya  Bay,  Cook  Inlet,  Unga  Island,  and 
Port  Mollar.  The  most  extensive  coal  fields  or  deposits 
are  in  the  Cook  Inlet  country,  cropping  out  on  the  beaches, 
and  along  many  of  the  streams.  Unga  Island  has  three 
distinct  veins  of  coal  extending  a  distance  of  two  miles 
upon  the  sides  of  the  mountains,  each  of  them  being 
several  feet  thick.  Some  work  has  been  done  here  within 
the  last  few  years  and  government  vessels  have  experi- 
mented with  the  coal,  but  find  it  contains  a  considerable 
amount  of  ash  and  clinker.  Doubtless  when  a  grreater 
depth  is  reached  it  will  improve  in  quality.  North  of 
Unga  Island,  about  ten  miles  inland  from  Stepovak  Bay, 
is  a  trail  or  portage  about  ten  miles  long  leading  to 
Herendeen  Bay,  at  Port  Mollar,  on  the  Bering  Sea  side. 
An  excellent  quality  of  coal  is  found  here  in  large 
quantities.  The  Alaska  Commercial  Company,  the  prin- 
cipal owners  of  the  mine,  have  shipped  considerable  coal 
to  their  station  at  Unalaska ;  and  its  quality,  both  for 
steaming  and  house  purposes,  is  found  to  be  superior  to 
that  found  at  Unga. 

Extensive  coal  fields  exist  at  Cape  Lisburne,  on  the 
Arctic  side,  extending  for  thirty  or  forty  miles  parallel 
with  the  coast,  and  for  a  number  of  miles  back  into  the 
interior.  It  is  of  a  lignite  character,  and  the  government 
vessels,  Corwin  and  Thetis,  have  taken  coal  for  steaming 
purposes  from  here,  and  have  found  an  excess  of  ash  and 
clinker,  which  seems  to  be  the  general  fault  with  all  coal 
thus  far  discovered  in  Alaska.     Strong  indications  of 


\-  \ 

\               \   '  ' 

1 

1, 

■ 

:r 

. 

i 

■-■^ 

I 
1                      \ 

t 

\ 


l! 


^ 


I 


256  SHEEP  IN  THE  MOUNTAINS. 

• 

petroleum  are  found  back  from  the  coast  a  few  miles,  in 
this  cold  Arctic  region,  and  also  between  Icy  Bay  and 
Cape  Yaktaga.  On  the  North  Pacific  coast,  west  of 
Yakutat  Bay,  there  are  thought  to  be  extensive  deposits 
of  petroleum.  Practically  all  the  coal  used  by  vessels 
navigating  the  Alaskan  waters,  and  in  the  mills  and  towns 
of  Alaska,  is  brought  from  the  Puget  Sound  country  and 
British  Columbia.  It  is  bought  at  the  mines  for  about 
three  dollars  per  ton,  and  the  expense  of  shipping  to  the 
Southern  Alaska  ports  is  five  or  six  dollars  per  ton.  The 
expense  of  opening  up  a  coal  mine  is  so  great  that,  until 
there  is  a  large  demand  in  Alaska,  it  is  doubtful  if  any 
of  the  mines  will  be  worked.  Beds  of  white  marble,  of 
a  very  fine  quality,  are  known  to  exist  on  Baranoff  and 
Admiralty  Islands.  •     ■      ' 

In  the  interior  of  Alaska,  moose,  caribou,  reindeer, 
bear,  and  other  kinds  of  big  game  abound.  However, 
the  miner  in  passing  through  the  country  is  liable  to  see 
very  little  of  these  animals.  The  natives  have  been  sc 
ruthless  in  their  attacks  upon  them  that  they  have  for 
the  most  part  retired  to  the  mountain  fastness  or  to  the 
northward  beyond  the  gold  diggings.  Occasionally  a  cari- 
bou will  be  seen  along  the  upper  Yukon  lakes.  The  big- 
horn, or  mountain  sheep,  and  mountain  goats — the  ibex 
— can  be  found  by  climbing  the  mountains  for  several 
thousand  feet  above  the  lakes.  Their  wool  is  long  and 
fine,  and  when  nicely  cleaned  and  tanned  makes  beautiful 
rugs.  The  horns  of  the  sheep  are  made  into  bowls  and 
ladles  by  the  natives. 

It  is  reported  that  it  is  entirely  due  to  the  bears  that 


THE  BROWN  BEAR. 


257 


the  Klondike  River  was  not  long  ago  made  to  give  up 
its  golden  treasures.  These  animals  were  very  thick  in 
this  section  of  the  interior  at  the  time  of  the  earlier  dis- 
coveries, and  on  account  of  the  trouble  they  gave  the 
first  prospectors  the  latter  moved  on  to  other  diggings 
where  they  could  work  unmolested.  Alaska  affords 
several  varieties  of  bears,  including  the  polar  or  white 
bear,  the  brown  bear,  and  the  grizzly  bear,  known  to 
science  as  the  Ursus  horribilis.  In  the  colder  months  of 
the  year  droves  of  polar  bears  may  be  seen  as  far  south 
as  St.  Matthew's  Island,  in  Bering  Sea,  but  when 
the  ice  begins  to  break  up  ther  *,  they  strike  out  for  the 
farthest  north,  as  far  as  the  Arctic  Ocean. .  Their  habits 
are  of  a  maritime  character ;  they  are  great  swimmers ; 
"  they  do  not  mind  a  swim  of  from  1 50  to  200  miles  if 
they  can  find  an  occasional  iceberg  to  rest  on.  They  are 
ferocious,  and  have  no  fear  of  any  enemy,  so  that  the 
sportsman  who  is  fond  of  adventures  with  a  spice  of 
danger  in  them  can  find  genuine  happiness  in  hunting 
the  polar  bear,  which,  however,  it  must  be  said,  has  a 
habit  of  killing  and  devouring  such  persons  as  may  seek 
sport  at  its  expense." 

The  brown  bear  of  Alaska  is  a  huge  and  shaggy  bear, 
varying  in  length  from  six  to  twelve  feet,  and  weighing 
from  800  to  1,500  pounds,  and  is  a  dangerous  adversary, 
the  terror  of  the  natives.  It  is  an  expert  fisher,  with  a 
good  appetite  for  salmon  in  its  season ;  and  when  the 
year's  run  of  that  dainty  fish  is  over  it  takes  to  the  hills, 
where  small  game  awaits  consumption.  The  brown  bear 
has  been  particularly  useful  as  a  road-maker  in  Alaska, 


I 


11 


II 


n 


I     I- 


2  eg  BELIEF  OF  THE  NATIVES. 

treading  the  river-banks  and  plains  in  a  purposeful  man- 
ner, so  that  the  traveler,  by  following  its  footsteps,  will 
find  the  easiest  routes  to  the  hills,  and  to  the  best  fording 
places.  Its  habitat  is  believed  to  run  as  far  north  as  the 
Arctic  Ocean.  As  to  its  ferocity,  the  natives  have  almost 
a  monopoly  of  the  stories.  Yet  there  is  an  authentic 
report  that  some  time  ago  two  men  killed  seven  brown 
bears  in  one  day  upon  the  mainland  adjacent  to  the  island 
of  Unga,  and  exhibited  the  skins  in  proof  of  their  good 
faith.  This  story  ought  to  give  encouragement  to  those 
sportsmen  who  like  a  spice  of  luck  as  well  as  of  danger 
in  their  sport. 

It  is  hard  to  tell  whether  the  grizzly  bear  of  Alaska  is 
more  ferocious  than  the  polar  bear  or  the  brown  bear  of 
that  part  of  America.  But  some  of  the  men  who  have 
traveled  near  Mount  St.  Elias  say  that  the  grizzly  found 
there  is  unequalled  for  ferocity,  being  fiercer  even  than 
the  Rocky  Mountain  variety.  The  Indian  will  never 
attack  it ;  he  takes  to  flight  at  the  sight  of  it.  It  has  no 
fear  of  bullets.  It  is  happy  when  it  lays  eyes  on  a  human 
being;  humanity  is  but  provender  for  it.  The  natives 
believe  that  it  possesses  supernatural  powers,  and  can 
hypnotize  the  man  who  goes  out  to  kill  it.  Yet  it  is  re- 
lated that  upon  one  occasion  a  party  of  two  Americans 
in  the  Mount  St.  Elias  region  saw  a  grizzly  at  a  distance 
eating  fish  upon  the  banks  of  a  stream,  and  determined 
to  try  conclusions  with  it.  They  got  reinforcements  by 
which  their  party  was  raised  to  the  number  of  six.  The 
six  men  raised  their  rifles  and  poured  a  volley  into  the 
body  of  the  enemy,  which  thereupon  rushed  toward  th: 


THE  ALASKA  BEAVBR. 


259 


firing  party.  As  the  animal  approached  they  peppered 
it  with  their  bullets  until  its  life  was  extinct  The  skin- 
ning of  it  was  the  next  thing;  and  it  was  one  of  the 
members  of  the  party  of  six  who  said :  "  When  the  skin 
was  stretched  out  it  looked  to  me  bigger  than  the  biggest 
bullock  hide  I  had  ever  seen  ! " 

That  was  an  adventure  for  sportsmen  who  have  no 
fear  of  danger,  but  rather  like  it.  In  truth,  there  is  no 
part  of  the  American  continent  where  an  adventurous 
hunter  can  get  livelier  experiences  in  bear  hunting  than 
those  which  are  to  be  found  in  Alaska.  He  can  take  his 
choice  between  the  polar  bear,  the  brown  bear,  and  the 
biggest  grizzly  on  earth.  He  can  hover  about  Mount  St. 
Elias,  take  observations  upon  the  mainland  near  Unga, 
or  go  stalking  among  the  ice  fields  which  border  the 
Arctic  Ocean,  some  distance  this  side  of  the  North  Pole. 

Among  the  land  animals  sought  after  on  account  of 
their  coats  of  fur  the  otter  is  the  most  widely  distributed. 
It  is  found  in  all  parts  of  Alaska  in  large  numbers. 
Its  hide  is  used  for  the  making  of  an  imitation  seal-skin. 
Beavers,  too,  are  to  be  found  in  many  places,  although  not 
in  such  numbers  as  formerly.  The  species  seems  to 
have  suffered  a  considerable  thinning  out  on  account  of 
the  recent  severe  winters.  During  the  early  days  of  the 
Hudson  Bay  Company's  history  a  beaver  skin  was  valued 
at  about  twenty-five  cents,  and  all  over  the  northwest 
country  was  used  as  the  equivalent  of  an  English  shilling. 
Since  the  thinning  out  of  these  animals  the  price  of  their 
skins  has  appreciated,  and  to-day  a  single  beaver  skin  is 
worth  from  SJJC  to  twelve  dollars,   The  tourists  look  upon 


5   I* 


I  j 


26o 


THE  RARE  SILVER  FOX. 


the  flesh  as  a  rare  delicacy,  and  it  forms  the  main  dish  at 
all  social  functions.  The  long  incisors  of  the  beaver  are 
used  by  the  natives  for  the  manufacture  of  chisels,  small 
adzes,  and  other  wood  and  bone-making  tools. 

Of  foxes,  Alaska  can  boast  of  an  enormous  supply. 
Red  foxes,  black  or  silver  foxes,  and  blue  foxes  are  the 
chief  varieties,  although  long,  unrestricted,  inter-mixture 
has  given  rise  to  a  number  of  kinds  of  foxes  which  can- 
not be  classified  under  these  heads.  The  red  fox  varies 
in  size  and  in  the  quality  of  its  fur  from  a  specimen  as 
large  as  the  high-priced  Siberian  fire-fox  to  the  small,' 
yellow  turgid  creature  that  is  to  be  found  in  such  num- 
bers on  the  Aleutian  Islands.  He  lives  on  fish,  flesh,  and 
fowl.  Nothing  in  the  animal  kingdom  seems  too  poor  to 
afford  him  food,  even  going  so  far  as  to  eat  mollusks,  and 
other  shell-fish.  His  fur  is  of  little  value,  and  the  natives 
rarely  eat  his  flesh,  and  then  only  when  driven  to  it  by 
the  pangs  of  hunger.  Two  or  three  dollars  is  about  the 
price  of  a  good,  red-fox  skin.  ? 

The  black  or  silver  fox  is  the  most  valuable  of  the 
vulpine  family.  He  inhabits,  for  the  most  part,  the  higher 
country,  and  has  his  lair  in  the  mountain  fastness.  He 
is  of  large  size  with  long,  soft,  silky  fur,  varying  in 
color  from  the  silver  tint  to  a  deep  jet  black,  the  latter 
being  the  rarer  and  the  most  highly  prized.  The  price 
of  a  fine  skin  sometimes  goes  as  high  as  forty  or  fifty 
dollars.  Black  foxes  of  an  inferior  quality  are  found  on 
the  sea-coast,  on  the  shores  of  Norton  Sound,  in  the  in- 
terior of  Kotzebue  Sound,  along  the  Yukon,  and  on  the 
Colville  River.     They  are  quite  plentiful  on   Kadiak 


A  WHITE  PROWLER. 


261 


Island  and  most  of  the  Al'^utian  Islands ;  but  thev  have 
been  transplanted  by  man's  agency  to  many  of  thv.se 
points. 

Along  the  southwestern  coast  there  are  many  islands, 
removed  from  the  shore  a  few  miles,  uninhabited  and 
never  visited  by  natives.  In  a  number  of  instances  white 
men  have  gathered  a  few  pairs  of  blue,  black,  and  silver 
foxes,  when  young,  from  the  natives,  and  taken  them  to 
these  islands  and  turned  them  adrift.  They  arrange  with 
the  natives  to  carry  food  to  them  at  stated  periods,  and 
they  become,  in  a  measure,  tame.  They  increase  very 
rapidly,  and  in  three  or  four  years  become  a  source  of 
profitable  industry  for  the  projectors  of  the  enterprise. 
On  the  seal  islands  the  propagation  of  the  blue  fox  has 
been  carried  on  for  some  years,  only  a  certain  number 
being  killed  each  year.  The  blue  fox  was  first  discovered 
on  the  Aleutian  Islands  in  1741.  It  has  been  protected 
against  intermixture  with  other  and  inferior  foxes,  and 
the  skins  are  of  the  finest  quality  and  command  a  high 
price  in  the  market. 

A  species  of  white  fox  is  found  along  the  continental 
coast  of  Alaska,  from  the  mouth  of  the  Kuskoquim  River 
northward  to  Point  Barrow.  Its  fur  is  snowy  white,  soft 
and  long,  but  is  not  durable ;  hence  it  does  not  command 
a  high  price  in  the  market.  The  white  fox  is  fearless, 
and  will  enter  villages  and  dwellings  in  search  of  food, 
or  out  of  mere  curiosity.  It  will  eat  anything  to  satisfy 
hunger,  and  in  the  depth  of  winter  the  natives  find  it  un- 
safe to  leave  any  article  of  clothing,  dog-harness,  or  boat 


\  * 


I' 


262 


THE  DEER  FAMILY. 


material  where  these  thieving  little  animals  can  find 
them. 

Mink,  lynxs,  muskrats,  and  wolverines  are  also  to  be 
found  in  certain  parts  of  Alaska.  The  skins  of  the  latter 
are  rarely  exported,  as  a  ready  market  is  found  at  home. 
The  natives  of  the  Kuskokwin  and  coast  districts  prefer 
this  shaggy,  piebald  fur  to  any  other  trimming  for  their 
wearing  apparel.  It  is  also  prized  highly  among  the 
Eskimo,  as  it  serves  as  an  excellent  protection  for  their 
faces  against  the  severe  blasts  of  the  north  country 
when  sewed  in  around  their  hoods. 

The  deer  of  the  Arctic  and  sub-Arctic  regions  have 
been  confounded  with  the  reindeer  of  other  localities. 
While  they  certainly  belong  to  the  same  family,  they  are 
what  is  called  the  barren  ground  caribou,  which  differs 
from  the  upland  caribou  and  domesticated  reindeer  in 
being  smaller  in  body  and  horns.  Owing  to  the  ruthless 
manner  in  which  they  have  been  slaughtered  their  num- 
bers have  been  greatly  diminished  during  recent  years. 
After  a  long  winter  in  the  interior,  when  their  food  sup- 
ply has  been  exhausted,  they  will  drift  down  to  the  coast 
in  search  of  more  favorable  conditions.  Here  they  are 
waylaid  by  the  natives  and  slaughtered  in  great  numbers 
for  their  hides.  Deer  forms  one  of  the  main  food  sup- 
plies of  Alaska,  and  an  effort  is  being  made  to  make 
their  killing  unlawful  for  a  term  of  years.  Unless  Con- 
gress authorizes  this  the  extinction  of  the  species  will 
not  be  far  off.  They  are  hunted,  in  the  rutting  season, 
by  a  call  made  from  a  blade  of  grass  placed  between  two 
strips  of  wood,  which  produces  a  very  clever  imitation 


CATCHING  HUMMING  BIRDS. 


263 


of  the  cry  of  the  deer.  This  call  leads  them  to  the 
ambushed  hunter ;  and  so  deceptive  is  it  that  it  is  not 
unusual  to  get  a  second  shot  should  the  first  fail.  The 
wolves  play  great  havoc  with  the  deer ;  and  it  is  remark- 
able that  they  exist  in  such  numbers  among  so  many 
ruthless  enemies.  *'       •  - 

Bald  anu  gray  eagles  are  numerous  throughout  South- 
east Alaska,  and  are  also  found,  to  some  extent,  in  the 
interior  wherever  there  is  large  timber.  The  natives  kill 
them  in  large  numbers  and  pluck  thr  feathers,  leaving 
nothing  but  the  down.  When  cleansed  the  skins  are 
sewn  together,  about  thirty  of  them  being  required  to 
make  a  robe,  which  is,  at  once,  rich  and  beautiful. 

Humming  birds  in  large  numbers,  having  the  delicate 
plumage  of  those  found  in  warmer  climates,  flit  from  bush 
to  bush  in  Southeast  Alaska.  Native  boys  tie  small 
pieces  of  red  flannel  on  a  limb,  and  cover  them  thickly 
with  pitch.  The  bright  color  attracts  th«  tiny  birds,  which 
alight  on  the  flannel.  Their  little  feet  adhere  so  tena- 
ciously to  the  pitch  that  they  cannot  extricate  themselves, 
so  they  become  an  easy  prey  to  the  youngsters  who  trap 
them,  only  to  worry  them  to  death  with  savage  cruelty. 

In  all  the  waters  of  Alaska,  whether  in  the  southeastern 
country,  the  interior,  or  Arctic  regions,  ducks  and  geese 
in  every  variety  are  found  in  vast  numbers.  Alaska  ap- 
pears to  be  especially  adapted  as  a  natural  breeding 
ground.  The  smaller  varieties  of  land  and  timber  birds 
are  as  numerous  as  the  water- fowl,  and  the  graceful 
swans  are  found  in  large  numbers  in  many  parts  of  the 
territory. 


J 


I 


jf 


254  HUNDREDS  OP  VARIBTIES  OP  PISH 

In  Arctic  Alaska  the  disappearance  of  the  snow  and 
ice  is  immediately  followed  by  the  arrival  of  birds  from 
the  south  in  large  numbers,  and,  in  a  few  weeks,  the 
Eskimo  revel  in  the  variety  and  number  of  eggs  found 
among  the  grass  and  tunora.  Besides  the  wholesale 
robbing  of  nests  for  eggs  the  young  fledglings  are  eaten 
by  the  Eskimos  with  a  keen  relish.  Their  stay  is  brief, 
however,  for  none,  save  the  most  hardy  of  the  Arctic 
birds,  remain  to  pass  the  long  months  of  winter  in  this 
region.  *•  «'.?.^   .7;j   r;   ^iVr-vi^a- -         i 

Next  in  importance  to  the  seals  and  the  gold  mines, 
on  which  this  chapter  does  not  touch,  ^he  salmon  and  cod 
fisheries  must  take  rank  in  any  account  of  Alaskan  re- 
sources. Upon  the  authority  of  Prof.  Brau,  of  the  United 
States  Fish  Commission,  it  may  be  stated  that  more  than 
one  hundred  varieties  of  fish  are  found  in  Alaskan 
waters.  ? 

Salmon  is  found  in  great  numbers  in  the  streams  from 
the  lower  extremities  of  Southeast  Alaska  to  the  Arctic 
Ocean.  The  most  favored  varieties  are  those  known  as 
the  red  or  silver  salmon,  weighing  from  eight  to  twelve 
or  fifteen  pounds  each,  and  the  king  salmon  often  weigh- 
ing as  high  as  fifty  pounds.  The  latter  variety  is  found 
only  in  a  few  localities  in  Southeast  Alaska  and  in  the 
Yukon,  many  miles  above  its  mouth.  It  is  said  that 
specimens  have  been  caught  weighing  over  one  hundred 
and  twenty  pounds. 

The  first  salmon  cannery  in  Alaska  was  erected  in 
1878,  and  at  the  present  time  there  are  nearly  fifty;  most 
of  them  are  in  operation  each  season. 


WHITE   LABOR  EMPLOYRD.  265 

Two-thirds  of  the  entire  salmon  pack  of  Alaska  is 
furnished  by  the  ten  canneries  on  the  Kadiak  Islands, 
which  are  almost  entirely  supplied  from  the  Karluk  River. 
This  stream,  which  is  on  the  west  coast  of  Kadiak,  is  only 
sixteen  miles  long,  from  100  to  600  feet  wide,  and  less 
than  six  feet  deep.  These  figures  give  the  dimensions 
of  the  almost  solid  mass  of  salmon  that  used  to  ascend 
the  Karluk  to  a  mountain  lake  above,  before  the  canners 
began  operations  with  traps  and  gill-nets  in  1 884.  The 
largest  cannery  in  the  world  is  at  Karluk.  In  these 
canneries,  in  1890,  there  were  1,1  cx>  employes,  and  over 
200,000  cases  of  48  one-pound  tins  contained  the  3,000,- 
000  salmon  packed  that  year.  A  single  haul  of  the  seine 
has  beached  1 7,000  fish.  The  company  which  operates 
on  the  Karluk,  is  composed  of  San  Francisco  people, 
who  own  the  boats  which  carry  away  the  product  and 
thus  avoid  paying  license  to  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment. The  labor  is  altogether  imported  from  the  States. 
Only  in  a  few  small  canneries  are  the  natives  employed. 

After  the  salmon  industry  had  taken  hold  in  Alaska 
it  increased  so  rapidly  that  it  was  soon  found  that  the 
supply  exceeded  the  demand.  A  sort  of  salmon  trust 
was  formed,  some  of  the  canneries  were  abandoned,  and 
each  cannery  received  its  pro  rata  share  of  the  proceeds 
of  the  canneries  in  operation.  The  total  output  for  1889 
was  over  700,000  cans. 

Cod  are  found  in  large  quantities  along  the  Aleutian 
chain  of  islands,  as  far  west  as  the  Alexander  archipelago, 
and  in  a  general  way  they  may  be  said  to  exist  along  tlie 
whole  southern  coast  of  Alaska. 


'I 


( 


'  I 


^ 


I 


■E 


366 


A  PBRIU)US  OCCUPATION. 


I 


I 


In  the  vicinity  of  the  Kadiak  group  of  islands,  and 
still  further  south  to  the  Simeonoff,  and  at  the  Shumagin 
group,  about  the  islands  of  Magipopf  and  Unga,  cod  are 
found  in  great  abundance.  In  Bering  Sea,  towards  the 
lower  Siberian  shore,  they  are  also.  Popofif  Island,  oppo- 
site Unga,  is  the  headquarters  for  the  cod-fishing  fleet 
There  are  large  warehouses  at  Humboldt  Harbor  and 
Pirate  Cove.  Most  of  the  cod  are  taken  to  California  to 
be  cured. 

Halibut,  which  is  found  along  the  northern  coa^t  and 
to  some  extent  in  Bering  Sea,  is  a  staple  article  of  diet 
with  the  natives.  This  is  also  true  of  the  herring,  which 
are  to  be  found  in  large  quantities. 

Whales  are  found  in  all  the  deep  waters.  Upwards  of 
seventy-five  vessels  are  now  engaged  in  the  whaling  busi- 
ness, and  they  must  penetrate  several  miles  above  Ber- 
ing Strait  before  they  encounter  any  of  them.  The 
business  is  hazardous,  and  great  risks  must  be  run.  In 
the  summer  of  1877  nearly  fifty  vessels  were  lost,  and  a 
number  of  crews  perished,  preferring  to  remain  on  the 
vessels  rather  than  risk  making  their  way  across  the  sea 
to  land.  This  catastrophe  led  the  government  to  estab- 
lish a  rescue  station  at  Point  Barrow,  the  most  northern 
point  of  Alaska,  which  is  provisioned  with  supplies  suffi- 
cient to  last  one  hundred  men  a  year.  It  is  in  charge  of 
a  government  official  whose  outy  it  is  to  render  aid  and 
succor  to  shipwrecked  sailors. 


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i 


CHAPTER  XII. 


CLIMATIC  CONDITIONS. 

The  wide  difTerence  l>etween  the  climate  of  the  coast  and  interior — What  gold- 
seeker*  will  find  in  the  way  of  weather — Mean  temperature  at  various  points 
compared — Influence  of  the  Pacific  currents — The  highest  and  lowest  points  of 
the  mercury— The  topography  of  the  country — Grandeur  of  sccLery  on  mountain 
and  plain — Remarkable  tides  of  tlie  ocean. 

GENERAL  statements  as  to  climate  applicable  to 
Alaska  as  a  whole  are  entirely  out  of  the  question, 
on  account  of  the  difference  ii:  conditions  which  obtain 
on  the  coast  and  in  the  interior,  even  thirty  miles  back 
from  the  sea.  The  climate  of  southeastern  Alaska  can 
be  compared  with  that  of  southern  Norway,  It  is  much 
milder  than  the  climate  in  the  same  latitude  on  the  At- 
lantic coast.  This  is  due  to  the  warm  current  of  the 
Pacific  that  sweeps  up  from  the  southwest,  having  the 
same  effect  that  is  produced  by  the  flow  of  the  Gulf 
Stream  in  the  Atlantic.  Summer  weather  on  the  coast 
is  much  more  liable  to  be  wet  and  cloudy  than  in  the  in- 
terior. May,  June,  and  part  of  July  are  usually  all  one 
could  desire,  but  from  that  on  to  the  opening  of  winter 
disagreeable  weather  is  the  rule  and  not  the  exception. 
At  St.  Michael,  during  this  period,  rain  falls  four  days  in 
seven.  In  October  the  winds  shear  round  from  the 
southwest  to  the  north  and  fine  weather  sets  in.  During 
the  fall  wind  storms  are  of^  frequent  occurrence. 
368 


■  '  ! 


to 


O 


.} 


FOUR  YEARS  COMPARED.  '      271 

The  mean  temperature  for  the  four  seasons  and  the 
year,  at  four  different  points  in  the  lower  Yukon  district, 
are  given  in  the  following  tabic.  The  first  point  is  Fort 
Get  There,  on  St.  Michael ;  the  second,  the  Greek 
Mission  at  Cogmute,  on  the  Yukon,  1 50  miles  from  its 
mouth ;  the  third,  at  Nulato,  a  Roman  Catholic  Mission, 
several  hundred  miles  further  up  the  river,  and  the  fourth 
at  Fort  Yukon : 

Means.  St.  Michael.  Cogmute.  Nulato.  Fort  Yukoi 

Spring .!9.3  19.62  29.3  14.22 

Summer, 53.0  59*32  60.0  59-67 

Autumn, 26.3  39.05  36.0  17.37 

Winter 8.6  0.95  14.0  23.80 

Year, 29.3  26.48  27.8  16.92 

Chief  Willis  L.  Moore,  of  the  Weather  Bureau,  has 
furnished  some  interesting  facts  about  the  climatic  con- 
ditions in  Alaska,  and  touching  particularly  on  the  Klon- 
dike region.  • 

The  general  conception  of  Alaskan  climate  is  largely 
due  to  those  who  go  down  to  the  sea  in  ships,  and  this 
is  not  stranore  wlen  we  consider  the  vast  extent  of  shore 
line — over  26,000  miles — possessed  by  that  Territory. 
The  climates  of  the  coast  and  interior  are  unlike  in  many 
respects,  and  the  differences  are  intensified  in  this,  as 
perhaps  in  few  other  countries,  by  exceptional  physical 
conditions.  The  natural  contrast  between  land  and  sea 
is  here  tremendously  increased  by  the  current  of  warm 
water  that  impinges  on  the  coast  of  British  Columbia, 
one  branch  flowing  northward  toward  Sitka,  and  thence 
westward  to  the  Kadiak  and  Shumagin  Islands. 


\ 


! 


^1 


•  V 


i 


272 


TEMPERATE  ALASKA. 


I 


The  fringe  of  islands  that  separates  the  mainland 
from  the  Pacific  Ocean  from  Dixon  Sound  northward 
and  also  a  strip  of  the  mainland  for  possibly  twenty  miles 
back  from  the  sea,  following  the  sweep  of  the  coast,  as 
it  curves  to  the  northwestward  to  the  western  extremity 
of  Alaska,  form  a  distinct  climate  division  which  may  be 
termed  temperate  Alaska.  The  temperature  rarely  falls 
to  zero  ;  winter  does  not  set  in  until  December  ist,  and 
by  the  last  of  May  the  snow  has  disappeared  except  on 
the  mountains.  The  mean  winter  temperature  of  Sitka 
is  32.5,  but  little  less  than  that  of  Washington,  D.  C. 
While  Sitka  is  fully  exposed  to  the  sea  influence,  places 
farther  inland,  but  not  over  the  coast  range  of  mountains, 
as  Killisnoo  and  Juneau,  have  also  mild  temperatures, 
throughout  the  v/inter  months.  The  temperature 
changes  from  month  to  month  in  temperate  Alaska  are 
small,  not  exceeding  25  degrees  from  midwinter  to  mid- 
summer. The  average  temperature  of  July,  the  warmest 
month  of  summer,  rarely  reaches  55  degrees,  and  the 
highest  temperature  of  a  single  day  seldom  reaches  75 
degrees. 

The  rainfall  of  temperate  Alaska  is  notorious  the 
world  over,  not  only  as  regards  the  quantity  that  falls, 
but  also  as  to  the  manner  of  its  falling,  viz.,  in  long  and 
incessant  rains  and  drizzles.  Cloud  and  fog  naturally 
abound,  there  being  on  an  average  but  sixty-six  clear 
days  in  the  year. 

Alaska  is  a  land  of  striking  contrasts,  in  climate  as 
well  as  topography.     When  the  sun  shines  the  atmos- 


i^ 


FROM  GLORY  TO  DESOLATION. 


273 


f 


I-', 


•5 


phere  is  remarkably  clear ,  the  scenic  effects  are  magnifi- 
cent; all  nature  seems  to  be  in  holiday  attire.  But  the 
scene  may  change  very  quickly ;  the  sky  becomes  over- 
cast ;  the  winds  increase  in  force ;  rain  begins  to  fall ; 
the  evergreens  sigh  ominousl)',  and  utter  desolation  and 
loneliness  prevail. 

North  of  the  Aleutian  Islands  the  coast  climate  be- 
comes more  rigorous  in  winter,  but  in  summer  the  differ- 
ence is  much  less  marked.  Thus,  at  St.  Michael,  a  short 
distance  north  of  the  mouth  of  the  Yukon,  the  mean 
summer  temperature  is  fifty  degrees,  but  four  degrees 
cooler  than  Sitka.  The  mean  summer  temperature  of 
Point  Barrow,  the  most  northerly  point  in  the  United 
States,  is  36.8  degrees,  but  four-tenths  of  a  degree  less 
than  the  temperature  of  the  air  flowing  across  the  sum- 
mit of  Pike's  Peak,  Col. 

The  rainfall  of  the  coast  region  north  of  the  Yukon 
delta  is  small,  diminishing  to  less  than  ten  inches  within 
the  Arctic  Circle. 

The  climate  of  the  interior,  including  in  that  desig- 
nation practically  all  of  the  country  except  a  narrow 
fringe  of  coastal  margin  and  the  territory  before  referred 
to  as  temperate  Alaska,  is  one  of  extreme  rigor  m 
winter,  with  a  brief,  but  relatively  hot,  summer,  espe- 
cially when  the  sky  is  free  from  clouds. 

In  the  Klondike  region,  in  midwinter,  the  sun  rises 
from  9.30  to  10  A.  M.,  and  sets  from  2  to  3  p.  M.,the  total 
length  of  daylight  being  about  four  hours.  Remember- 
ing that  the  sun  rises  but  a  few  degrees  above  the  hori- 


, 


ii'l 


iiH 


i 


•; 


274 


THE  WINTER  GLOOM. 


r  <i 


zon,  and  that  it  is  wholly  obscured  on  a  great  many 
days,  the  character  of  the  winter  months  may  easily  be 
imagined. 

We  are  indebted  to  the  United  States  Coast  and 
Geodetic  Survey  for  a  series  of  six  months*  observations 
on  the  Yukon,  not  far  from  the  site  of  the  present  gold 
discoveries.  The  observations  were  made  with  standard 
instruments,  and  are  wholly  reliable.  The  mean  tem- 
perature of  the  months  October,  1889,  to  April,  1890, 
both  inclusive,  are  as  follows:  October,  33  degrees; 
November,  8  degrees*;  December,  1 1  degrees  below 
zero;  January,  17  degrees  below  zero;  February,  15 
degrees  below  zero ;  March,  6  degrees  above  zero ; 
April,  20  degrees  above.  The  daily  mean  temperature 
fell  and  remained  below  the  freezing  point  (32)  from 
November  4th,  1889,  to  April,  21st,  1890,  thus  giving  168 
days  as  the  length  of  the  closed  season  of  18S9-90," 
assuming  the  out-door  operations  are  controlled  by 
temperature  only. 

The  lowest  temperatures  registered  during  the  winter 
were  :  32  degrees  below  zero  in  November,  47  below  in 
December,  59  below  in  January,  55  below  in  February, 
45  below  in  March,  26  below  in  April. 

The  greatest  continuous  cold  occurred  in  February, 
1890,  when  the  daily  mean  for  five  consecutive  days  was 
47  degrees  below  zero.  The  weather  mode»*ated  slightly 
about  the  ist  of  March,  but  the  temperature  still  re- 
mained below  the  freezing  point.  Generally,  cloudy 
weather  prevailed,  there   being  but  three  consecutive 


SNOW  ONE  DAY  IN  THREE. 


275 


days  in  any  month  with  clear  weather  during  the  whole 
winter.  Snow  fell  on  about  one-third  of  the  days  in 
winter,  and  a  less  number  in  the  early  spring  and  late 
fall  months. 

Greater  cold  than  that  here  noted  has  been  experi- 
enced in  the  United  States  for  a  very  short  time,  but 
never  has  it  continued  so  very  cold  for  so  long  a  time. 
In  the  interior  of  Alaska  the  winter  sets  in  as  early  as 
September,  when  snow  storms  may  be  expected  in  the 
mountains  and  passes.  Headway  during  one  of  these 
storms  is  impossible,  and  the  traveler  who  is  overtaken 
by  one  of  them  is  indeed  fortunate  if  he  escapes  with  his 
life.  Snow  storms  of  great  severity  may  occur  in  any 
month  from  September  to  May,  inclusive. 

The  changes  of  temperature  from  winter  to  summer 
are  rapid,  owing  to  the  great  increase  in  the  length  of 
the  day.  In  May  the  sun  rises  at  about  3  a.  m.  and  sets 
about  9  p.  M.  In  June  it  rises  about  1.30  in  the  morning 
and  sets  at  10.30,  giving  about  twenty  hours  of  daylight 
and  diffuse  twilight  the  remainder  of  the  time. 

The  mean  summer  temperature  of  the  interior  doubt- 
less ranges  between  60  and  70  degrees,  according  to 
elevation,  being  highest  in  the  middle  and  lower  Yukon 
valleys. 

As  a  rule,  in  the  coast  country  it  is  clear  but  a  few 
days  in  the  year.  Usually,  however,  in  June  and  July, 
the  sun  pierces  the  heavy  clouds  and  brightens  the  whole 
landscape.  The  rains  are  not  so  cold  and  chilly  as  else- 
where even  in  southern  latitudes. 


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A  HEALTHY  COUNTRY. 


Notwithstanding  the  marked  variations  in  the  climate, 
Alaska  is  essentially  a  healthy  country.  The  only  pre- 
vailing diseases  are  those  of  a  bronchial  nature,  and  in 
most  cases  these  troubles  can  be  directly  traced  to  im- 
prudent exposure. 

The  snow  of  the  interior  partakes  much  of  the  char- 
acter of  frost,  sifting  slowly  down  in  intensely  cold 
weather  until  it  lies  several  inches  deep,  light  and  fluffy ; 
but  at  times,  in  warm  weather,  it  thaws  and  settles  into 
a  hard  crust,  affording  excellent  surface  for  sledding. 

The  great  precipitation  and  humidity  of  the  atmos- 
phere in  Southern  Alaska  cause  the  entire  coast  region 
to  be  clothed  in  a  mantle  of  perennial  green.  Vegeta- 
tion is  dense  and  the  forests  magnificent.  The  soil  is 
rich,  though  in  the  heavily  timbered  section  it  is  shallow 
and  from  the  most  eastern  point  of  the  territory  to 
Kadiak  root  crops  are  easily  grown. 

The  remarkable  labyrinth  of  islands  which  skirt  the 
coast  of  Alaska,  the  great  plains  of  the  interior,  inter- 
sected by  deep  rivers,  gigantic  snow-crowned  mountains, 
the  active  volcanoes  and  the  mighty  ice  fields,  with  many 
other  singular,  beautiful,  and  awe-inspiring  gifts  of 
nature,  combine  to  make  the  country  of  the  new  gold 
fields  one  of  notable  grandeur  and  wonder. 

Alaska  is,  topographically  speaking,  naturally  divided 
into  two  great  divisions — Southeast  and  Western 
Alaska.  Mt.  St.  Elias  marks  the  dividing  line  between 
Western  Alaska  and  Southeast  Alaska,  at  141  degrees 
west  longitude,  running  north  from  this  point  to  the 


. 


MT.  ST.  ELIAS  ON  THE  LINE. 


277 


i 


4 

\ 


Arctic  Ocean.  For  a  number  of  years  it  was  supposed 
that  Mt.  St.  Elias  was  within  American  territory,  but 
late  surveys  show  most  of  its  base  to  be  just  over  the 
line  in  the  Canadian  Dominion. 

Many  of  the  islands  in  the  inland,  or  tourist  route, 
have  the  appearance  of  half-submerged  mountains,  and 
water  two  hundred  fathoms  deep  is  often  found,  where 
the  breadth  of  the  channel  can  be  almost  spanned,  by  the 
length  of  the  ship. 

Fiords  are  numerous,  some  of  them  winding  in  ser- 
pentine fashion  a  distance  of  twenty  or  more  miles,  into 
the  islands  or  mainland.  The  gi  eat  rivers  of  the  in- 
terior drain  immense  valleys,  with  mountain  ranges 
everywhere  visible.  Lakes  are  abundant,  often  sur- 
rounded by  tundra  or  swamps,  very  frequently  impene- 
trable, covered  with  brush,  rank  grasses,  and  other 
vegetation.  After  the  interior  is  reached — and  by  this 
is  meant  after  the  coast  mountains  are  crossed,  in  many 
places,  only  twenty  or  thirty  miles  from  the  coast — the 
soft  earth  and  luxuriant  vegetation  of  the  coast  country 
give  place  to  frozen  ground,  and  lichens  and  mosses  on 
the  mountain  sides  and  in  the  valleys.  But  though  the 
vast  plains  of  the  interior  are  completely  within  the 
grasp  of  the  ice  king  for  eight  months  of  the  year,  with 
the  advent  of  the  long  days  of  summer  water  runs, 
flowers  bloom,  and  grasses  spring  into  life  as  if  by 
magic,  and  their  growth  is  at  once  luxuriant  and  rapid, 
even  though  in  many  places  the  soil  is  never  thawed 
beyond  a   few   inches  below  the   surface.     In  the  far 


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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
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Hiotographic 

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Corporation 


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WESSr^R,  N.Y.  14580 

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278 


BORING  THROUGH  ICE  FOR  WATER. 


north  at  St.  Michael,  and  at  Point  Barrow,  wells  have 
been  dug  through  sixty  feet  of  solid  ice,  and  the  same 
condition  has  been  noted  on  the  Yukon,  at  Forty-Mile. 

The  Aleutian  Islands,  stretching  far  out  into  the  North 
Pacific,  surrounded  by  rocks  scarred  and  battered  for 
ages,  by  the  boisterous  wav«s,  are  without  trees,  but 
they  are  thickly  covered  with  a  low  growth  of  luxuriant 
vegetation.  Between  the  mountains  and  the  sea  are 
small  plateaus  or  prairies,  with  soil  enriched  by  vege- 
table mold,  and  suitable  for  domestic  gardening.  Grass 
grows  abundantly  here,  sometimes  to  a  height  of  six 
feet.  It  is  cured  by  the  natives,  to  feed  a  few  small 
Siberian  cattle,  and  they  also  braid  it  into  useful  and 
often  ornamental  articles,  such  as  baskets,  hats,  and 
mats. 

Many  people  familiar  with  Alaska  deem  Cook  Inlet, 
which  lies  to  the  north  of  Kadiak,  to  be  the  pleas- 
antest  portion  of  the  country  for  residence.  Its  skies 
are  always  bright  in  summer. 

The  guiding  landmarks  of  Alaska  may  be  said  to  be 
its  grand  mountains,  volcanic  peaks,  and  mammoth 
glaciers.  Mt.  St.  Elias  lifts  Us  ermine  top  over  18,000 
feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  In  the  distance  it  seems 
to  have  its  base  on  the  very  shore  of  the  ocean,  although 
in  reality  sixty  miles  distant.  From  the  south  side  of 
Mt.  St.  Elias  eleven  glaciers  slowly  make  their  way 
oceanward,  one  of  them,  named  Agassiz  glacier,  being 
estimated  to  be  twenty  miles  in  width  and  fifty  in  length, 
covering  an  area  of  one  thousand  square  miles. 


PEAKS  AND  VOLCANOES. 


279 


Mt.  Fairweather,  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  south 
of  Mt.  St.  Elias,  is  about  15,500  feet  high;  Mt.  Crillon, 
15,000;  Mt.  Perouse,  14,300,  and  Mt.  Wrangel  is  over 
19,000. 

There  are  thirty  or  more  volcanoes  in  Alaska,  six 
or  eight  of  which  are  in  an  active  state  of  eruption. 
Shishaldin,  which  is  9,000  feet  high,  is  certainly  burning, 
and  its  smoke  may  always  be  seen  in  clear  weather.  It 
is  situated  on  Unimak  island  near  the  pass  of  the  same 
name,  usually  followed  by  vessels  in  entering  Bering  Sea. 
Pavlof,  about  one  hundred  miles  to  the  eastward,  is 
another  smoking  mountain;  the  glow  from  its  crater 
may  be  seen  reflected  against  the  heavens.  Mt. 
Makushin,  at  the  eastern  extremity  of  Unalaska  island, 
is  about  5,500  feet  in  height,  and  gives  evidence  of  being 
more  or  less  active ;  while  the  tops  of  Pogrumnoi  and 
Shishaldin,  on  Unimak  island,  serve  as  beacons  at  night 
or  in  foggy  weather  for  vessels  on  their  way  into  Bering 
Sea,  as  they  can  be  seen  distinctly,  towering  above  the 
dense  atmosphere.  Akutan  island  has  a  smoking  vol- 
cano, 4,000  feet  high;  and  on  Atka  island  there  are 
several  volcanoes,  from  3,000  to  4,000  feet  in  height, 
which  occasionally  emit  smoke. 

Mt.  Logan,  the  highest  known  mountain  in  North 
America,  unless  it  may  be  Mt.  Wrangel,  has  an  ele- 
vation of  19,000  feet.  Some  surveyors  claim  that 
Wrangel  is  a  loftier  peak  than  Logan,  but  its  exact  height 
is  unknown.  Wrangel  is  clearly  within  Alaska,  but  Loga(i 
is  a  few  miles  east  of  the  line,  in  Canadian  territory. 


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28o 


THE  LOFTIEST  PEAK. 


Hot  mineral  springs  abound  all  over  the  various 
groups  of  Alaska,  especially  those  stretching  from  the 
Alaskan  peninsula  westward  toward  Asia.  About  fifteen 
miles  south  of  Sitka  hot  springs  are  found  which  seem 
to  contain  remarkable  curative  properties.  The  Indians 
ha/e  for  many  generations  used  the  health-giving 
waters,  and  the  white  man  follows  in  his  dark  brother's 
track. 

The  aspect  of  the  land  about  Bering  Strait  is  moun- 
tainous but  not  remarkably  precipitous.  The  strait  is 
only  forty-eight  miles  wide,  and  the  narrow  passage  is 
partially  filled  by  some  islands.  It  is  not  without  the 
range  of  probability  that  the  day  will  come  when  a  rail- 
road around  a  large  part  of  the  circumference  of  the 
world  will  pass  over  this  now  silent  strait. 

It  is  considered  physically  impossible  to  span  Bering 
Strait  with  a  bridge,  owing  to  the  swift  current  and  the 
vast  quantities  of  ice  which,  in  winter,  are  continually 
flowing  through,  and  which  would  speedily  demolish 
such  a  structure.  It  may  be  possible,  however,  that  the 
strait  could  be  tunneled,  and  it  has  been  suggested  that 
it  could  be  filled  in  with  rock,  allowing  sufficient  open- 
ings for  the  waters  to  run  through  and  for  vessels  to 
pass,  thus  forming  an  adamantine  roadway  between  the 
extreme  west  and  east,  as  represented  by  the  United 
States  and  Siberia. 

The  mountains  that  mark  the  westernmost  point  of 
the  continent  at  Cape  Prince  of  Wales  are  rocky  and 
barren,  the  ledgts  standing  upc  n  high  pillars,  with  shat- 


m 


1 


A  POSSIBLE  ENGINEERING  FEAT. 


281 


tered  sides  and  uneven  surfaces.  Toward  the  base, 
facing  Bering  Strait,  the  slope  is  gradual,  extending  into 
a  low  sandy  beach  reaching  out  into  the  strait  a  mile  or 
more  and  then  bearing  to  the  north.  Endless  quantities 
of  rock  could  be  taken  from  these  mountains  of  solid 
stone  and  dumped  into  the  strait,  until  a  roadway, 
similar  to  the  great  wall  of  China,  but  deeper  and 
broader  and  stronger,  would  rise  from  the  bottom  of  the 
shallow  waters.  The  expense,  it  is  true,  would  be  enor- 
mous— and  no  attempt  is  here  made  to  discuss  scientific 
difificulties  in  the  way-  -but  let  it  be  remembered  that  all 
great  engineering  projects  have  been  first  ridiculed  and 
denounced  as  chimerical,  as  witness  the  Suez  Canal, 
Nicaragua  Canal,  the  Panama  Canal,  and  other  great 
triumphs  of  engineering  skill.  The  practicability  of  the 
Panama  Canal,  in  which  the  French  people  invested  tens 
of  millions  of  dollars,  though  yet  uncompleted,  has  been 
fully  demonstrated.  To  carry  so  gigantic  an  enterprise 
to  a  successful  completion  unlimited  capital  and  labor 
would  be  required.  In  the  matter  of  labor,  if  white  men 
cnuld  not  be  found,  Eskimos  could  be  utilized. 

The  tides  of  the  Pacific  coast  of  Alaska  differ  from 
tliose  we  are  familiar  with  on  the  Atlantic  seaboard. 
Lieutenant  Ray,  in  reporting  to  the  Hydrographic  Office, 
speaks  of  them  as  "perplexing  tidal  irregularities." 
During  the  summer  months  of  May,  June,  and  July  there 
occurs  but  one  high  and  one  low  water  during  each 
twenty- four  hours,  high  water  at  the  full  change  of  the 
moon  occurring  about  midnight  and  varying  but  slightly 


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SOME  TIDAL  NOTES. 


from  that  hour  during  the  entire  six  months.  The 
springs  range  from  eight  to  ten  feet,  the  neaps  from  four 
to  five  feet.  The  tides  are  almost  stationary  for  two 
hours  on  either  side  of  high  and  low  water,  unless 
affected  by  strong  winds  outside. 

During  August,  September,  and  October,  there  are  two 
high  and  low  waters  during  twenty-four  hours,  a  superior 
and  an  inferior  tide.  During  the  winter  almost  a  re- 
versal of  these  rules  appears  to  take  place.  In  Novem- 
ber, December,  and  January  the  twelve-hour  tides  again 
occur,  but  the  high  water  appears  at  noon,  instead  of 
midnight.  In  February,  March,  and  April  there  are  two 
tides,  the  superior  high  water  occurring  in  the  afternoon. 
Thus  it  may  be  said  that  in  the  summer  the  tides  are  low 
during  the  day,  the  highest  occurring  during  the  night, 
and  in  winter  the  opposite  is  the  case.  The  tides  during 
those  months  when  two  occur  every  day  are  far  more 
irregular  than  at  the  time  when  there  is  but  one.  Another 
anomaly  is  that  the  greatest  range  frequently  occurs  at 
the  first  and  last  quarters,  instead  of  at  the  full  and 
change  of  the  moon. 


/) 


)» 


-^        :     CHAPTER  XIII.  / 

'  CIVILIZED  ALASKA.  .0 

The  Government,  Trade,  and  Cities  of  the  Oldest  Parts  of  the  Northern 
Territory — Settlements  of  the  Coast  and  how  they  are  Supported — 
The  Great  Salmon  Canneries.  The  Strong  Hand  of  Uncle  Sam — The 
Greek  Church  and  its  Work  among  the  Natives — The  Capiu  A  and 
Metropolis  of  the  Territory — What  the  Intrepid  Missionaries  Hav! 
Done  for  Alaska. 

SINCE  the  sending  of  Russian  missionaries  to  Alaska 
more  than  a  century  ago,  the  march  of  civiHzation 
in  that  part  of  the  frozen  North  has  been  steady, 
though  somewhat  slow.  Perhaps  no  other  element  has 
contributed  so  much  to  the  progress  as  those  unselfish, 
determined  missionaries  and  the  ones  who  succeeded 
them.  If  they  endured  all  manner  of  privations  and 
hardships  in  their  work,  they  nevertheless  had  the  satis- 
faction which  comes  to  all  in  viewing  the  successful  issue 
of  their  labors.  What  has  been  accomplished  for  civili- 
zation is  now  to  be  seen  on  every  side  in  the  way  of 
thriving  towns  and  prosperous  industries,  which  speak 
volumes  for  the  glorious  future  of  a  country  which,  with 
all  the  evils  of  its  climate  and  remote  situation,  is  sin- 
gularly blessed  in  many  ways. 

The  hand  of  civilization  has  not  as  yet  extended  far 
from  the  coast  in  Alaska,  but  it  is  certain  that  with  the 
new  discoveries  of  gold,  and  the  tide  of  population  flow- 
ing into  the  interior,  the  pleasant  conditions  existing  in 

283 


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V' 


284 


SITKA. 


the  towns  of  the  southeast,  the  comforts  and  many  of 
the  luxuries,  the  schools  and  industries,  the  courts  and 
other  safeguards,  will  soon  follow. 

Sitka,  while  not  the  largest  town  in  Alaska,  that  posi- 
tion being  held  by  Juneau,  is  the  capital  of  the  Territory, 
and  in  addition  to  its  being  the  seat  of  government  terri- 
tory, has  other  claims  to  the  distinction  of  being  regarded 
as  the  centre  of  its  civilization.  It  is  situated  on  Baranof 
Island,  the  best  known  of  all  the  islands  in  the  Archi- 
pelago.  It  is  1 20  miles  long  and  30  miles  wide.  Here 
Alexander  Baranof,  a  Russian  merchant,  established  a 
trading  post  as  long  ago  as  1 799.  The  present  town  is 
situated  about  three  miles  south  of  the  site  of  that  post. 
A  fort  was  early  established  at  Sitka  and  continued  until 
the  transfer  of  the  territory  to  the  United  States.  After 
the  withdrawal  of  the  Russian  troops  the  natives  de- 
stroyed much  of  the  property  and  sacked  the  town,  but 
order  being  restored  again  the  town  has  grown  steadily 
since  then,  though  its  population  even  now  numbers 
something  less  than  3000. 

Sitka  is  the  official  residence  of  the  Governor  of  the 
territory,  the  United  States  District  Judge,  and  other 
officers.  It  is  also  the  home  port  of  men-of-war  and 
revenue  vessels  patrolling  the  surrounding  waters.  The 
town  is  built  on  level  land  at  the  mouth  of  the  Indian 
River  at  the  foot  of  Mt.  Verstovi.  Lincoln,  which  is  the 
main  street,  extends  from  the  government  wharf  to  the 
old  Russian  sawmill,  one  of  the  ancient  landmarks  of  the 
island.  A  large  parade-ground  fronts  the  harbor.  A 
granite  monument  in  the  centre  is  the  United  States 


BARANOF    MANSION. 


285 


Astronomical  Station.  Mail  steamers  remain  at  Sitka 
twenty-four  hours,  and  others  for  a  shorter  time.  The 
chief  objects  of  interest  are  the  "Castle,"  once  occupied 
by  the  manager  of  the  Russian  Fur  Company,  the  Greek 
Cathedral  Church,  the  Indian  village,  the  block  house 
and  Russian  cemetery,  and  the  museum  and  industrial 
school. 

The  barracks  and  custom-house  are  relics  of  the  Rus- 
sian dominion,  and  in  the  former  is  the  territorial  jail  and 
offices  of  the  Government.  A  long  flight  of  steps  leads 
to  the/*  Castle,"  where  the  whites  protected  themselves 
from  the  natives  in  1867.  On  this  site  Baranof  first  built 
his  home.  Later  the  Russian  Governor  erected  a  man- 
sion there,  which  was  destroyed  by  an  earthquake  in  1847, 
and  rebuilt.  It  was  a  massive  and  in  some  respects  a 
unique  structure.  Built  of  cedar  logs,  it  was  joined  by 
copper  boil'  ~,  and  riveted  to  the  rock  foundation.  It 
had  a  glass  cupola,  which  was  formerly  the  harbor  light- 
house. The  building  was  richly  furnished  and  decorated, 
but  was  looted  during  1867  after  the  departure  of  the 
Russian  troops.  In  1893  it  was  restored,  but  soon  after 
wrecked  by  a  fire. 

Baranof  built  a  small  chapel  at  Sitka  in  18 16,  but  when 
Ivan  Veniaminofl"  was  made  Bishop  of  Russian  America 
he  erected  a  cathedral  in  1844.  It  occupies  a  quadrangle 
on  Lincoln  Street.  The  chime  of  six  bells  was  sent  from 
Moscow.  The  interior  is  richly  decorated.  The  treas- 
ury contains  rich  and  beautiful  vestments.  The  chapel 
of  St.  Mary,  nearby,  is  used  for  services  in  winter.  The 
altar  picture  there  of  the  Madonna  and  Child,  shadowed 


l>! 


i' 


286 


BLARNEY  STONE. 


with  heavy  silver  draperies,  is  much  admired,  as  are  some 
similar  works  elsewhere  in  the  cathedral  and  chapel.  So 
it  will  be  seen  that  even  in  this  far  away  land  art  is  not 
forgotten.  The  Czar  of  Russia,  as  the  head  of  the 
Greek  Church,  maintains  the  churches  and  chapels  of 
Alaska,  numbering  some  seventy.  He  transferred  the 
Bishop's  see  from  Sitka  to  San  Francisco  at  one  time, 
but  removed  it  to  Unalaska,  and  then  back  to  Sitka. 
Thus  some  of  the  old  glory  of  St.  Michael's  Cathedral 
has  been  restored.  The  Bishop  occupies  a  long,  green- 
roofed,  comfortable  mansion. 

The  Lutheran  Church,  built  by  Governor  Etholin  in 
1840  for  the  Swedes  and  Finns  employed  in  the  foun? 
dries  and  shipyards,  was  the  garrison  church  after  the 
transfer,  but  was  later  abandoned  and  torn  down. 

One  of  the  largest  buildings  in  Sitka  is  the  big  log 
structure,  now  occupied  by  a  general  trading  store,  was 
formerly  the  chief  office  of  the  Russian- American  Fur 
Company.  There  is  an  eminence  in  the  northern  part 
of  the  town,  where  a  Russian  race-track  was  formerly 
located,  which  has  been  reserved  for  the  erection  of  an 
executive  mansion  either  by  the  National  Government 
or  the  Crmmonwealth  when  Alaska  is  admitted  to  the 
Union. 

Sitka  had  at  one  time  a  large  ice  trade,  the  product 
being  shipped  down  the  coast  to  the  cities  of  the  Pacific 
seaboard,  but  the  cheap  method  of  making  ice  by  machine 
has  ruined  this  industry. 

The  "Blarney  stone,"  a  square  block  on  the  beach,  is 
supposed  to  endow  those  who  kiss  it  with  a  magic  tongue. 


Chilkoot  Coat. 


MRS.   TOM. 


289 


The  Sitka  Mission  and  Industrial  School  was  founded  by 
the  Presbyterians  in  1878,  and  is  a  prosperous  and  use- 
ful institution.  The  native  village  fronting  on  the  harbor 
north  of  the  Sitka  wharf  has  been  transformed  since 
1880.  Prior  to  that  time  the  Indians  lived  in  great  com- 
munal dwellings  surrounded  by  filth,  but  Captain  Glass 
had  the  village  cleaned  at  that  time  and  the  houses  num- 
bered for  record  and  sanitary  inspection.  The  enforce- 
ment of  rigid  rules  and  the  stimulation  of  the  Indian 
pride  have  wrought  much  change  for  the  better.  Mrs. 
Tom,  who  is  sometimes  called  th  lueen,  is  by  no  means 
of  princely  lineage,  but  comes  of  thi:  commonest  Yakutat 
stock.  She  has  shown  a  rema.\aWr'  ability  as  a  money- 
maker. She  is  one  of  the  shrewdest  traders  in  the  ter- 
ritory, and  owns  lands  and  schooners  worth  a  very  nice 
fortune.  The  Sitkan  Indians  number  about  louo.  They 
are  descended  from  wanderers  and  renegade*?  of  many 
tribes,  and  are  regarded  with  contempt  by  almost  all  the 
other  Indians  of  Alaska. 

The  fur  trade  has  long  been  Sitka's  chief  industry,  but 
the  gold  discoveries  in  the  last  thirty  years  have  been 
very  demoralizing  to  it.  In  187 1  Edward  Doyle  found 
float  gold  on  the  shores  of  Silver  Bay  near  Sitka.  He 
uncovered  a  quartz  stringer  on  Round  Mountain  and 
another  on  Indian  River.  The  Haley  and  Rogers  lode 
on  Salmon  Creek  was  first  worked  by  the  garrison  offi- 
cers. The  Stewart  mill,  on  a  neighboring  claim,  was 
built  in  1877,  and  the  Bald*  Mountain  claims  were  soon 
after  discovered.  Governor  Swineford's  energy  revived 
the  languishing  mining  interes*  in  1885,  ^^^  since  then 


5 

t 

I 

1 


1 


•* 


290 


GOVERNMENT  OF  ALASKA. 


a  number  of  more  or  less  valuable  claims  have  been 
opened,  and  many  of  the  citizens  of  Sitka  are  directly  or 
indirectly  interested  in  mining  enterprises. 

The  government  of  Alaska  as  carried  on  at  Sitka  is 
the  usual  one  applied  to  all  the  Territories  of  the  United 
States,  with  some  modifications  necessary  to  adopt  it  to 
the  peculiar  conditions.  The  Governor  and  Secretary  of 
the  Territory  are  appointed  by  the  President,  and  live 
and  carry  on  their  duties  at  Sitka.  By  far  the  most 
onerous  duties,  however,  fall  to  the  share  of  the  court 
officers.  At  the  head  of  the  judicial  branch  is  the  United 
States  Judge,  appointed  by  the  President.  There  are 
also  the  United  States  Marshal  and  the  Commissioners, 
the  former  having  deputies  in  various  other  towns.  The 
active  force  at  hand  to  carr)'  on  the  work  of  government 
is  at  present  small.  The  police  force  consists  of  the 
eight  deputy  marshals.  There  are  in  all  eight  Commis- 
sioners and  eight  deputies.  In  case  of  serious  trouble 
the  marshal  could  summon  a  posse  of  citizens  to  enforce 
order.  The  laws  of  the  United  States  are  rigidly  en- 
forced in  Southeastern  Alaska,  but,  of  course,  with  so 
small  a  force  at  his  disposal  the  marshal  must  largely 
depend  on  the  citizens  themselves  to  enforce  order  in 
the  new  gold-fields  of  the  interior.  There  is  also  a  land 
office  at  Sitka,  and  it  is  probable  that  two  others  will 
shortly  be  established  at  Circle  City  and  Dawson. 

Captain  Ray,  of  the  United  States  Army,  and  several 
officers  of  his  command  who  are  familiar  with  Alaska, 
are  at  present  in  the  Territory,  with  a  view  to  making  a 
report  on  the  necessities  of  the  case  there  in  the  matter 


■■■I 


JUNEAU. 


291 


of  preserving  the  peace.  It  is  not  unlikely  that  one  or 
more  companies  of  the  regular  army  will  be  ordered 
north  in  the  spring. 

The  metropolis  and  gateway  of  our  big  northwest  ter- 
ritory is  Juneau,  a  town  about  twenty  years  old.  In  spite 
of  the  immensity  of  the  couutry  it  is  hard  to  find  room 
enough  on  the  coast  to  build  a  town  on,  and  conse- 
quently Juneau  is  much  crowded  for  space.  The 
streets  are  hardly  half  the  usual  width,  and  the  houses 
reach  up  the  foot  of  the  mountain  as  high  as  it  is 
safe  to  build  them  on  account  of  the  risk  from  snow- 
slides. 

As  there  is  plenty  of  timber  everywhere,  all  the  houses, 
including  the  Federal  building,  are  of  wood.  Even  the 
Indians  live  in  fairly  good  frame  houses.  The  law,  as 
far  as  it  extends,  is  administered  by  the  United  States 
authorities.  A  Federal  commissioner  hears  all  cases  that 
come  up,  disposing  of  the  smaller  ones  and  holding  the 
more  serious  offenders  to  the  United  States  Court.  Most 
of  the  cases  are  for  violation  of  the  liquor  regulations. 
For  the  most  part  the  liquor  laws  are  a  dead  letter. 
Dozens  of  saloons  are  run  openly  without  paying  any 
kind  of  license.  An  occasional  arrest  is  made,  but  it 
does  not  serve  as  a  check  on  the  business.  Public 
opinion  is  against  the  enforcement  of  the  law.  The  only 
offence  of  this  nature  that  is  regarded  seriously  is  the 
selling  of  liquor  to  the  Indians.  Public  opinon  condemns 
this,  and  there  are  occasional  convictions  for  it. 

The  Indians  give  more  or  less  1  rouble  in  their  tribal 
relations.    They  seem  to  be  unable  to  understand  that 


M^^m 


292 


KYACKS. 


they  cannot  make  and  enforce  their  own  savage  laws  as 
they  once  did. 

A  slight  hill,  or  ridge,  divides  the  business  portion  of 
Juneau  from  the  Indian  town.  Standing  on  this  ridge  at 
any  time  in  the  day  one  may  enjoy  an  animated  picture 
on  the  beach  below.  The  one  important  item  in  life  to 
these  Indians  is  their  fishing.  Their  houses  line  the  beach 
at  a  safe  distance  above  high  tide,  and  all  the  interme- 
diate space  is  filled  with  the  appurtenances  of  their  craft. 
Their  long,  boats,  or  kyacks,  turned  up  at  both  ends,  and 
which  cut  the  water  like  a  knife,  are  drawn  up  out  of 
reach  of  the  surf,  and  are  generally  covered  over  with 
skins  or  cloths  to  protect  them  from  the  weather.  And 
of  very  good  workmanship  are  these  boats.  Some  of 
these  are  six  feet  across  in  the  widest  place,  and  may  be 
twenty  or  thirty  feet  long,  hewn  from  a  solid  piece  of 
timber.  From  the  care  and  accuracy  bestowed  upon 
them  it  looks  as  though  it  might  easily  take  a  good  work- 
man a  year  to  make  such  a  craft.  These  boats  are  very 
speedy,  and  the  Indians  fearlessly  undertake  any  sort  of 
a  sea  voyage  in  them.  Sometimes  the  Alaskan  Indians 
go  all  the  way  down  to  Puget  Sound  for  the  sake  of  a 
month's  work  during  the  hop-picking  season  and  for  the 
incident  excitement.     Their  chief  dependence  is  fishing. 

Juneau  is  an  ideal  mining  camp.  Every  building  in 
the  town,  and  everylnhabitant,  bears  the  aspect  of  activity 
and  prosperity  peculiar  to  live  mining  camps. 

With  but  few  exceptions,  the  inhabitants  have  not 
found  time  to  clear  their  lots  of  the  stumps  or. gnarled 
roots  that  litter  as  well  as  make  a  rustic  ornament  for 


METROPOLIS  OF  ALASKA* 


293 


every  door-yard.  But  there  are  a  number  of  handsome 
residences  and  neat  business  houses ;  and  a  system  of 
water  works  that  draws  its  supply  from  the  purest  of 
mountain  streams,  and  an  electric  light  plant  which  for 
four  months  of  the  year  gives  way  to  the  brilliant  light  of 
heaven's  sun,  taking  its  turn  again  for  four  months  in  the 
winter,  excepting  only  a  few  hours  at  midday. 

All  roads  lead  to  Rome,  it  is  said,  and  all  routes  in 
Alaska  lead  to  Juneau.  The  Yukon  miner  comes  here 
to  outfit  for  his  long  and  hazardous  trip  into  the  interior ; 
all  travellers  who  come  to  Alaska,  whether  for  business 
or  pleasure,  and  even  the  United  States  Court,  if  in 
session  at  Sitka,  the  capital,  comes  here  for  nineteen- 
twentieths  of  its  jurors,  without  whom  it  could  not  trans- 
act business.  Juneau  is  righdy  called  the  metropolis. 
Whether  she  will  retain  this  prestige  remains  to  be  seen. 
If  so,  one  of  two  things  must  occur.  She  must  plane 
down  the  sides  of  her  mountains  or  erect  sky-scraping 
buildings  with  elevators  to  accommodate  her  populace, 
for  nearly  every  foot  of  available  ground  is  already 
occupied. 

The  population  of  Juneau  numbers  about  three  thou- 
sand souls ;  and  the  enterprise  of  the  people  and  vol- 
ume of  business  are  shown  by  the  support  given  to  the 
three  newspapers  here  published :  The  Mining  Record, 
the  oldest  paper  published  here,  is  devoted  especially  to 
the  mining  interests  of  the  country;  the  Searchlight,  a 
metropolitan-appearing  journal,  and  the  News, 

Juneau  was  founded  in  the  winter  of  i88c>-'8i,  six 
months  after  the  discovery  of  gold  (August  15,  1880), 


if 


294 


FORT  WRANGEL. 


by  Joseph  Juneau  and  Richard  Harris.  It  went  under 
the  name  of  Harrisburg  at  first,  and  afterward  was 
called  Rockwell,  but  the  miners,  at  a  meeting  about 
a  year  after  its  foundation,  decided  to  rechristen  it  in 
honor  of  the  discoverer  of  gold. 

Fort  Wrangel  is  an  important  station,  on  an  island  by 
that  name,  off  the  mouth  of  the  Stikine  river.  It  was  the 
second  settlement  in  Alaska,  and  commands  a  broad, 
mountain-walled  harbor  that  lies  eighty  miles  in  from  the 
ocean.  This  gives  it  a  warmer  and  a  drier  climate  than 
places  on  the  outer  coast.  The  thermometer  often 
reaches  90°  in  the  summer,  and  extreme  cold  is  almost 
unknown.  Admiral  Wrangel  founded  the  first  settle- 
ment on  the  island.  United  States  troops  occupied  a 
fort  there  for  the  ten  years  following  1867,  but  they  were 
then  withdrawn.  With  the  decrease  in  the  mining  in- 
terest on  the  Stikine  river,  Fort  Wrangel's  trade  was 
almost  lost,  and  the  little  village  is  now  supported 
almost  entirely  by  the  lumber  trade.  It  is  destined  to 
see  much  of  a  revival  now,  however,  for  it  is  on  one 
of  the  <main  routes  to  the  Klondike  country,  and  all  the 
boats  stop  there. 

The  Metlakatlan  Indians,  who  emigrated  to  Alaska 
from  British  Columbia,  have  an  interesting  settlement 
on  the  Annette  islands  in  the  Alexander  archipelago,  and 
a  few  white  people  live  among  them  and  direct  their 
labors,  which  are  devoted  largely  to  canning  salmon. 
Some  8000  cases  of  salmon  are  shipped  away  annually. 
These  people  publish  a  newspaper.  They  have  a  photo- 
graph gallery,  jewelry  making  stores,  schools,  and  vari- 


f  ,-irfmBU,9,i=  tmv-  unynmimi^mKt 


^f^ 


VHMI 


KILLISNOO. 


295 


It  in 


ous  other  establishments.  There  are  many  salmon-can- 
ning settlements  along  the  coast,  but  the  largest  estab- 
lishment is  at  Loring,  at  the  entrance  of  Naha  bay.  The 
canning  industry  represents  an  investment  of  several 
million  dollars,  and  the  output  of  all  Alaska  amounts  at 
present  to  over  half  a  million  cases. 

Killisnoo,  on  Kenanow  Island,  is  the  site  of  large  oil 
and  guano  works.  There  is  a  post-office,  a  government 
school,  and  a  Russian  chapel. 

Fort  Kenai  is  located  on  Cook's  inlet,  which  extends 
160  miles  inland  between  the  Chignik  range  and  the 
mountainous  Kenai  peninsula.  This  inlet  and  the  settle- 
ments along  its  shores  have  long  figured  prominently  in 
the  talk  of  the  gold-fields  of  the  north.  Sheltered  on 
all  sides,  its  shores  enjoy  a  mild  climate.  The  warm, 
dry  summers  won  for  it  the  name  of  "  Summer  Land " 
from  the  Russians.  Fort  Kenai  was  garrisoned  by  the 
United  States  troops  for  some  years,  but  it  is  only  a 
trading-post  now.  There  are  three  canneries  on  the 
inlet.  Gold  was  found  there  as  early  as  1855,  and  pros- 
pectors are  now  camped  in  large  numbers  along  the 
shores. 

St.  Paul,  with  a  population  of  500,  is  on  the  northeast 
shore  of  Kadiak  island,  and  was  the  first  headquarters 
01*  the  Shelikoff  and  Baranof  fur  trade.  Furs  to  the 
value  of  <f  300,000  are  shipped  yearly. 

On  the  island  of  Unalaska  is  the  town  of  Iliuhuk, 
"the  curving  beach,**  better  known  as  Unalaska,  which 
is  a  port  of  entry  for  all  ships  passing  in  or  out  of  Bering 
Sea.    It  is  the  metropolis  of  the  west,  though  its  popula- 


I 


:         \: 


if 
H 


I'  * 


296 


DR.   SHELDON  JACKSON. 


tion  is  less  than  500.  A  United  States  commissioner 
and  deputy  collector  of  revenue  reside  there.  The 
Greek  Church  is  the  second  in  size  in  A^laska.  Beside 
the  Russian  parish  school  there  is  a  government  day 
school  and  a  Methodist  mission.  It  is  die  headquarters 
for  the  Alaska  Commercial  Company.  The  ships  of  the 
Pacific-Arctic  whaling  fleet  call  there  for  supplies,  and 
during  the  modus  vivendi  in  the  early  nineties  it  was  the 
headquarters  of  the  American  and  British  fleets.  There 
is  direct  communication  with  Sitka,  1250  miles  distant, 
by  monthly  mail  steamers,  and  frequent  communication 
with  San  Francisco,  2100  miles  away. 

To  Dr.  Sheldon  Jackson,  who  first  visited  Alaska  in 
1884,  is  due,  in  a  large  measure,  the  present  excellent 
condition  of  the  Alaska  school  system.  While  the  mis- 
sionaries had  been  working  faithfully  to  ameliorate  the 
condition  of  the  natives  since  late  in  the  last  century, 
their  progress  had  been  slow.  Through  Dr.  Jackson's 
efforts,  Mrs.  A.  R.  McFarland,  an  energetic,  capable 
woman,  took  up  the  work  at  Fort  Wrangel,  where  a 
native  teacher  had  long  sought  unaided  to  elevate  the 
moral  status  of  his  people.  Mrs.  McFarland  became 
nurse,  doctor,  undertaker,  preacher,  and  teacher.  No 
marriage  ceremony  then  existed  among  the  natives,  and 
polygamy,  slavery,  and  devil  dances  were  common.  Her 
untiring  efforts  did  much  to  eradicate  these  evils  and 
further  substantial  progress.  She  left  Fort  Wrangel  a 
few  years  later,  and  is  now  engaged  in  the  same  work 
at  the  lower  portion  of  Prince  of  Wales  Island,  where 
she  is  loved  and  respected  by  the  natives. 


I 


REINDEER. 


297 


In  1885  Congress  made  an  appropriation  for  the  Alaska 
public  school  system,  and  Dr.  Jackson  was  appointed 
General  Agent  of  Education  for  the  Territory.  In  this 
capacity  he  has  established  schools  in  the  most  advan- 
tageous points  throughout  the  whole  Territory,  and  the 
apportionment  of  the  public  moneys  among  the  already 
established  church  denominations  has  made  the  mission- 
ary work  of  Alaska  a  mighty  bulwark  of  religious  strength 
for  the  welfare  of  the  natives.  Dr.  Jackson  is  truly  a 
pioneer  Christian  worker.  After  many  years  of  arduous 
duty  in  a  number  of  the  Western  Territories  he  sought  a 
new  field  in  the  great  Alaskan  Territory.  He  was  con- 
fronted by  the  totally  unorganized  state  of  the  country, 
devoid  of  laws  or  government ;  but  his  indomitable  spirit 
was  not  held  down  by  difficulties — he  gained  the  ear  of 
the  powers  at  Washington — and  his  earnest,  fervent  faith 
is  daily  proved  by  his  works.  To  Dr.  Jackson  also  be- 
longs the  credit  of  importing  reindeer  from  Siberia  to 
Arctic  Alaska.  While  in  search  of  new  fields  for  mis- 
sionary and  school  work  he  discovered  that  the  Eskimos 
were  starving.  He  at  once  interested  Government  in 
the  cause,  and  to-day  the  industry  of  domesticating  rein- 
deer in  that  section  is  an  assured  fact. 

In  this  connection  it  is  proper  to  add  that  this  humane 
proposition  was  at  first  met  with  severe  criticism  and 
opposition  on  the  ground  that  it  was  impracticable  and  a 
useless  expenditure  of  public  money.  And  were  it  not 
that  Mr.  Harris,  United  States  Commissioner  of  Educa- 
tion, gave  it  his  hearty  support  and  encouragement,  the 
most  beneficent  act  ever  extended   to  a  worthy   and 


k 


298 


INDIAN  SCHOOLS. 


Starving  people  would  not  have  become  as  it  has,  an 
assured  success.  And  to  this  broad-minded  and  worthy 
official,  who  has  stood  faithfully  by  the  cause  of  education 
in  Alaska,  is  also  largely  due  the  credit  of  its  advance- 
ment in  this  far-off  Territory. 

The  first  school  in  Alaska  was  organized  at  Kadiak 
by  Gregory  Shelikofif  in  1784.  And  the  first  church 
building  was  also  there  erected ;  it  still  exists,  but  the 
school  has  been  extinct  for  a  quarter  of  a  century. 

The  Indian  industrial  training  schools  have  proved 
excellent  institutions.  Among  these  three  deserve  espe- 
cial mention.  They  are  located  at  Sitka,  Koserefsk  jn 
the  Yukon,  and  at  New  Metlakahtla.  The  founder  and 
director  of  the  latter  is  Mr.  William  Duncan,  to  whose 
work  reference  is  made  elsewhere  in  this  volume.  The 
school  at  Sitka  is  partially  aided  by  this  government,  and 
is  under  the  management  of  the  Presbyterian  Board  of 
Home  Missions,  and  that  of  Koserefski  is  under  Roman 
Catholic  supervision. 

In  these  schools  the  boys  are  taught  painting,  carpentry, 
shoemaking,  and  other  trades.  The  girls  are  instructed 
in  cooking,  baking,  sewing,  and  all  branches  of  plain  house- 
keeping, the  purpose,  in  short,  of  these  schools,  being  to 
civilize  and  christianize  the  native  children. 

The  number  of  private  schools,  supported  by  various 
religious  denominations,  is  nineteen,  while  the  number 
supported  by  the  government  is  sixteen.  The  Russian 
church,  established  so  long  ago,  has  many  communicants, 
but  many  of  them  retain  their  belief  in  witchcraft,  polyg- 
amy, and  kindred  barbarous  practices. 


MISSIONS. 


299 


The  indefatigable  efforts  of  teachers  and  missionaries, 
their  absolute  devotion  to  the  work  of  civilization  and 
Christianizing  the  natives  of  Alaska  has  been  of  incal- 
culable benefit  to  this  hitherto  neglected  people.  There 
has  been  mental,  moral,  and  physical  growth,  whose 
influence  is  far-reaching,  and  which  should  command 
the  hearty  sympathy  and  support  of  all  humanitarians, 
irrespective  of  class  or  creed. 

The  Greek  Church,  so  early  in  the  field,  had  a  few 
priests  who  did  good  work  for  the  natives. 

Father  Tosi,  of  the  Roman  Catholic  faith,  has  labored 
long  years  with  devotion  on  the  Yukon.  Father  Althoff, 
after  sixteen  years  of  Alaskan  labor,  has  been  appointed 
to  work  in  Vancouver,  British  Columbia.  He  opened 
the  mission  work  in  Juneau,  founded  there  the  school 
and  hospital  of  St.  Ann's  and  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church.  Through  many  discouragements  and  uncer- 
tainties. Father  Althoff  and  the  good. sisters  labored  at 
Juneau,  receiving  nothing  for  their  services  save  their 
their  frugal  board  and  modest  apparel. 

There  are  three  principal  Episcopal  missions — St. 
James,  Fort  Yukon,  and  Circle  City — that  administer  to 
about  2000  natives,  1 300  of  whom  are  baptismal  mem- 
bers of  the  church,  and  there  are  several  other  stations 
besides  these.  Much  painstaking  work  has  been  done 
in  offering  them  the  Scripture  in  a  way  that  they  can 
understand.  Many  of  the  Indians  can  read  in  their  own 
language,  which,  as  printed,  consists  of  a  literature  of 
translations  of  the  Bible,  Prayer-book,  and  Hymn-book. 
These  Indians  seem  particularly  susceptible  to  religious 


j 
^ 


•| 


•I ;; 


1;% 


300 


MAGNIFICENT   DISTANCES. 


teaching.  A  little  education  seems  to  show  more  quickly 
when  applied  to  an  Indian  than  it  does  on  any  other  race. 
It  shows  on  the  surface.  It  smooths  out  the  wrinkles  on 
his  forehead,  as  if  the  tangled  threads  of  life  had  been 
set  aright.  He  looks  much  better,  and  no  doubt  the 
effect  is  far  reaching. 

A  thousand  miles  is  as  nothing  in  the  jurisdiction  of 
Bishop  Rowe,  of  the  Episcopal  Church.  It  is  more  than 
that  far  from  Anvik  to  Circle  City,  and  yet  they  are 
spoken  of  as  neighbors.  The  Rev.  J.  L.  Prevost  has 
charge  spiritually  of  the  few  hundred  miles  of  the  river, 
which  includes  the  mining  towns  and  the  post  at  the 
mouth  of  Tanana  river,  which  latter  place  is  called  Fort 
Adams  although  the  mission  is  designated  St.  James. 
Mr.  Prevost  has  made  that  station  his  residence  for  two 
or  three  years.  They  have  a  boarding-school  for  natives 
there,  and  among  other  enlightening  influences  he  has 
started  a  small  newspaper,  which  is  now  issued  from 
the  press  twice  a  year,  and  it  is  a  very  interesting  little 
paper,  for  it  contains  the  news  of  the  country — some- 
thing of  all  that  is  going  on — from  Herschel  Island  to 
the  mines,  and  from  Bering  Sea  to  Mackenzie  River. 
Mr.  Prevost  will  have  a  small  steamboat  at  his  disposal 
next  year,  and  will  be  enabled  to  move  thoroughly  over 
his  field.  The  work  of  religious  teaching  at  Fort  Yukon 
for  the  most  part  has  been  deputed  to  a  native  cate- 
chist. 

Other  Protestant  denominations  have  missions  on  the 
Yukon  and  along  the  coast  of  Alaska,  notably  the  Pres- 
byterians and  the  Methodists^ 


PROTESTANT   MISSIONARIES. 


301 


The  work  of  the  Protestant  missionaries  will  be  facili- 
tated by  the  introduction  of  the  little  Siberian  reindeer, 
provided  the  experiment  proves  a  success,  which  now 
seems  likely,  although  it  will  be  rather  slow  in  practical 
benefits.  The  Eskimos  will  need  to  be  patiently  taught 
new  traits.  Their  natural  inclination  is  to  kill  and  eat. 
This  likewise  is  the  ruling  passion  of  their  dogs,  and  both 
must  be  trained  and  restrained. 

The  majority  of  the  Protestant  missionaries  are  mar- 
ried, and,  of  course,  have  their  families  with  them. 
There  are  those,  especially  of  the  Church  of  England 
missions,  who  have  almost  grown  old  in  this  particular 
field.  Bishop  Bompass,  of  the  Selkirk  diocese,  has  been 
in  the  country  since  the  establishment  of  the  mission, 
thirty  years  ago.  It  is  said  he  can  take  a  slab  of  dried 
salmon  in  each  pocket,  and  for  a  few  days  out-travel  an 
Indian  courier.  And  the  worthy  bishop,  while  extending 
the  sway  of  the  Gospel,  has  taken  some  thought  at  odd 
times  of  worldly  matters.  His  wealth  is  estimated  at 
J2 50,000.  The  Jesuits  enter  the  field,  of  course,  to 
stay. 

Supported  distinctively  by  the  Amr-*can  Province  of 
the  Moravian  Church,  the  mission  in  Alaska  dates  from 
the  year  1884,  when  in  response  to  the  invitation  of  Dr. 
Sheldon  Jackson,  A.  Hartmann  and  William  H.  Wien- 
land  were  sent  on  a  tour  of  exploration  to  the  Nushagak 
and  Kuskoquim  Rivers  in  northwestern  Alaska.  The  first 
permanent  missionaries,  William  H.  Weinland  and  John 
H.  Kilbuck  and  their  wives,  together  with  Hans  Tor- 
geirsen,  who  was  to  go  out  temporarily  to  aid  in  erecting 


! 


M 


302 


TORGERSEN  DROWNED! 


the  needful  houses,  landed  at  the  mouth  of  the  Kusko- 
quim  River,  on  June  19,  1885.  On  August  K>  Torgersen 
was  drowned  whilst  sailing  up  the  river  with  supplies  for 
Bethel,  as  they  named  the  station  they  founded.  The 
first  converts  were  received  into  Church  fellowship  on 
September  10,  1888.  A  second  station  was  founded  at 
Carmel,  on  the  Nushagak,  by  Frank  E.  Wolff,  in  1887, 
who  was  accompanied  by  his  wife  and  Mary  Ruber. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


NOTES   FROM   ALASKAN    HISTORY. 


Vital  Bering,  aa  emisiary  of  Peter  the  Great — Discovery  of  Mount  St.  Elias — Four* 
teen  lost  sailors — Alexander  Baranof  and  the  inception  of  the  Russian  American 
Company — Spanish  attempts  to  possess  Alaska — Russian  oppression  and  cruelty 
— An  idyll  of  Baranof  Castle — Purchase  by  the  United  States — A  blood-stained 
flag — The  naming  of  the  territory — Military  occupation  and  civil  goternjient — 
Governors  past  and  present — Proposed  legislation. 

THE  history  of  our  northwest  possessions  begins 
with  the  voyages  of  discovery  by  Vitus  Bering,  an 
officer  in  the  Russian  navy.  In  1728,  bearing  a  commis- 
sion from  Peter  the  Great,  he  found  the  strait,  between 
Siberia  and  America,  which  bears  his  name.  In  1 741,  at 
the  behest  of  the  Empress  Anne,  he  started  to  find  Vasco 
d^  Gama's  fabled  land.  After  encountering  and  weather- 
ing a  severe  storm  he  reached  Kayak  Island  on  St.  Elias 
Day,  July  1 7th,  1 741,  saw  and  named  the  great  mountain 
that  to-day  is  one  of  the  monuments  which  set  the  line 
between  the  American  and  British  possessions.  A  few 
days  later  this  intrepid  old  sea-dog  was  shipwrecked  on 
the  Comandorski  Islands  and  lost  his  life.  His  scurvy- 
stricken  crew  put  back  into  a  Siberian  port,  carrying 
with  them  a  few  skins  of  seals  whose  flesh  had  kept  them 
from  starvation.  Immediately  Russian  traders  sent  out 
expeditions  to  get  more  of  these  rich  furs.  Tschirikow 
was  in  command  of  one  of  these  parties,  and  arriving  on 
the  coast  near  the  present  site  of  Sitka,  sent  a  boat's 

303 


i 


^1 


304 


RUSSIAN  AMERICAN  FUR  CO. 


i 


crew  to  make  a  survey  of  the  bay.  They  failed  to  come 
back,  and  a  second  crew  was  dispatched  to  make  search. 
After  waiting  for  three  weeks  Tschirikow  sailed  for 
home  short  of  fourteen  men  and  a  number  of  boats.  This 
experience  put  a  damper  on  Alaskan  exploration,  and 
there  was  but  little  activity  in  this  direction  until  1783, 
when  Gregory  Shelikoff,  a  rich  Siberian  merchant,  estab- 
lished a  post  on  Kadiak  Island.  He  took  into  partner- 
ship with  him  Alexander  Baranof,  a  Russian  merchant, 
who  had  been  ruined  by  the  loss  of  his  caravans.  They 
seem  to  have  been  a  very  energetic  firm,  and  did  much 
to  establish  their  business  on  a  firm  basis.  In  May,  1 799, 
Baranof  built  a  stockaded  post  on  the  island  which  bears 
his  name,  three  miles  north  of  the  present  city  of  Sitka. 
That  same  year  Emperor  Paul  VIII  granted  a  charter  to 
the  Russian  A^merican  Fur  Company.  This  corporation 
was  the  result  of  a  consolidation  of  nine  rival  Siberian 
trading  concerns,  and  had  a  number  of  the  imperial 
family  as  stockholders.  Up  to  this  time  the  Romanoffs 
had  given  but  little  attention  to  their  American  domains. 
The  new  company  was  given  absolute  control  of  the 
country  for  a  period  of  twenty  years,  and  Baranof  was 
made  the  resident  manager. 

In  the  meantime  the  news  of  Tschirikow's  discoveries 
had  reached  Spain  and  had  aroused  the  cupidity  and 
interest  of  the  reigning  monarch, 

Spain  took  alarm  at  the  apparently  important  nature 
of  the  Russian  explorations.  In  order  to  neutralize 
what  she  evidently  considered  an  encroachment  on  her 


C/3 


o 


w 


PI 


» 


?1 


I 


I 


y 


PEREZ  EXPEDITION. 


307 


claimed  rights  to  all  territory  not  chartered,  Spain, 
through  her  cabinet,  ordered  an  exploring  expedition  to 
proceed  along  the  coast  to  the  northward  of  California. 

This  expedition,  which  was  under  Perez,  added  some- 
what to  the  then  slight  knowledge  regarding  the  Alas- 
kan peninsula.  Perez  sighted  and  mapped  two  capes, 
to  which  he  gave  the  names  of  Santa  Margarita  and 
Santa  Magdalena.  The  Perez  expedition  did  not  land 
at  Santa  Margarita,  and  the  observations  of  the  Alaskan 
territory  recorded  by  the  leader  of  the  expedition  were 
based  upon  his  experience  at  Santa  Magdalena. 

Unquestionably  the  mapping  of  the  coast  by  Perez 
was  crude  and  faulty,  and  it  would  scarcely  call  forth 
comment  but  for  the  fact  that  some  of  the  members  of 
his  expedition  rescued  from  the  hands  of  the  natives  an 
old  bayonet  and  other  implements  of  a  civilization  of 
which  the  Alaskans  were  not  supposed  to  have  cogni- 
zance. The  conjecture  of  the  pilot  of  the  expedition 
that  these  relics  were  but  grewsome  mementos  of  the 
lost  sailors  of  the  Tschirikow  expedition  was  doubtless 
well  founded.  The  suggestion  of  cannibalism,  which 
here  intrudes  itself  has  no  other  basis  than  conjecture. 

Another  Spanish  expedition  was  sent  out  in  1775.  and 
a  landing  made.  The  whole  territory  was  claimed  for 
the  Spanish  crown,  but  the  Castilian  government  failed 
to  follow  it  up  very  actively.  In  1787  the  Viceroy  of 
Mexico  was  instructed  to  dispatch  an  expedition  with  a 
view  to  exploring  the  northwestern  coast  for  the  pur- 
pose of  finding  if  possible  desirable  locations  for  settle- 


^'  I 


I 


o8 


MEXICAN  EXPEDITION. 


U- 


ment.  An  expedition  was  sent  from  Mexico  and 
anchored  at  Pueilo  des  Flores,  where  they  took  posses- 
sion and  remained  for  a  time  in  friendly  intercourse  with 
the  natives.  From  this  point  they  proceeded  to  Kaclich, 
where  the  chief  of  the  colony  impressed  upon  the  Span- 
ish commander  the  fact  that  the  Czar  had  firmly  estab- 
lished his  title  to  this  domain  as  far  south  as  52°  of 
latitude.  At  this  time  the  Russians  in  Alaska  were 
represented  by  six  settlements  colonized  by  about  400 
men,  who  were  in  control  of  six  vessels. 

Shortly  thereafter  the  Russian  empress  ordered  Jacobi 
to  report  on  the  best  means  of  finally  establishing  Rus- 
sian dominion  over  the  islands  of  the  Eastern  ocean  and 
the  northwest  coast  of  America,  and  the  best  system  of 
government  for  the  same.  In  an  exhaustive  report 
Jacobi,  among  other  things,  recommended  the  dispatch  of 
a  fleet  from  the  Baltic  to  protect  navigation  in  the  Pacific. 

Though  constant  quarrels  between  rival  trading  com- 
panies constituted  a  drawback  to  the  colonization  of  the 
new  region,  it  had  thus  far  been  attended  by  a  fair 
amount  of  success. 

In  the  year  1783  the  Siberian  merchants  increased 
their  facilities  for  operating  on  a  larger  scale  in  the  new 
country.  They  sent  to  Alaska  a  company  of  192  men, 
which  was  the  largest  force  that  had  been  sent  from  the 
Siberian  coast  at  any  one  time.  Another  party  sent  to 
the  new  colony  at  this  time  encountered  forces  of  hostile 
natives,  and  after  severe  fighting  a  number  of  them  were 
killed.    These  were  the  conditions  which  led  up  to  the 


OPPRESSION  AND  CRUELTY. 


309 


the 


chartering  of  the  Russian  American  Fur  Company  as 
above  set  forth. 

The  history  of  this  company's  rule  is  one  of  oppression 
and  cruelty.  The  natives  were  pressed  into  the  service 
of  the  company,  and  forced  oftentimes  to  work  without 
remuneration,  except  as  the  scanty  food  and  clothing 
furnished  them  might  be  looked  upon  as  such.  The 
resident  managers  and  their  assistants  led  lives  marked 
by  debauchery  and  crime.  New  Archangel,  named  after 
Russia's  great  Arctic  port,  and  which  at  a  later  date  was 
given  the  name  of  Sitka,  was  the  principal  settlement, 
but  the  company  had  about  forty  stations.  They  ex- 
ported annually  25,000  skins  of  the  seal,  sea-otter, 
beaver,  etc.,  besides  about  20,000  sea-horse  teeth. 

The  company's  charter  was  renewed  in  1 819  and  again 
in  1839.  In  1863  tl'^  Russian  American  Fur  Company 
closed  its  career,  t^ie  last  charter  having  run  its  course. 
Neither  party  to  the  agreement  seemed  anxious  for  a 
continuance. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  negotiations  looking  toward 
a  purchase  by  the  United  States  began.  So  great  was 
the  popular  opposition  to  the  scheme  that  it  would  cer- 
tainly never  have  been  consummated  had  it  not  been  for 
the  steadfastness  of  Secretary  of  State  Seward.  In  view 
of  the  steady  growth  of  the  territory  under  United  States 
government,  and  particularly  in  the  light  of  recent  de- 
velopments, some  of  his  utterances  at  the  time  seem 
almost  prophetic.  To  accomplish  the  transfer  was  his 
heart's  desire.    He  was  ably  seconded  in  his  aims  by 


1» 


I? 


i 

5 


,.j 


3IO 


PRICE  AGREED  ON. 


i!  iii 


Charles  Sumner,  whose  speech  in  the  Senate  on  "  the 
cession  of  Russian  America"  was  one  of  the  finest 
oratorical  efforts  of  his  career. 

Conjecture  is  never  idle,  and  various  reasons  have 
been  assigned  why  Russia  disposed  of  her  vast  posses- 
sions on  this  continent. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  United  States  commenced 
the  neorotiation  to  remunerate  Russia,  under  the  guise  of 
purchase,  for  her  friendly  attitude  toward  us  during  the 
civil  war.  Many  also  believe  that  Russia  sought  to  dis- 
pose of  this  territory  to  the  United  States  that  England 
might  not,  in  aome  way,  absorb  it,  and  so  strengthen  her 
already  powerful  hold  on  this  continent.  The  most 
reasonable  solution  of  the  question,  however,  is,  that  she 
wished  to  be  relieved  of  the  care  and  protection  which 
her  subjects  so  constandy  required  of  her  in  maintaining 
the  semblance  of  a  government  on  this  continent,  so 
far  removed  from  her  own  shores.  This  view  is  also 
strengthened  by  the  fact  that  Russia  at  no  time  from  the 
earliest  acquisition  of  the  territory  manifested  any  special 
interest  in  its  development,  and  that  the  motives  that 
actuated  her  in  holding  her  possessions  were  largely  in- 
fluenced by  the  Russian  American  Fur  Company. 

In  the  earlier  negotiations  during  the  presidency  of 
Franklin  Pierce,  $5,000,000  was  informally  suggested  to 
the  Russia  government  as  a  fair  price  for  the  territory. 
The  Romanoffs  seemed  to  think  that  this  sum  doubled 
would  be  more  equitable.  Seven  million  two  hundred 
thousand  dollars  was  the  price  finally  agreed  upon. 


I 


TREAT/. 


3" 


The  treaty  between  Russia  and  the  United  States 
was  signed  March  30th,  1867,  and  finally  ratified  by  the 
Senate  on  June  20th  of  the  same  year.  The  ceremony 
of  the  transfer  was  very  simple.  Had  one  been  in  Sitka 
a  certain  bright  October  afternoon  in  1867  he  would 
have  seen  beautiful  Sitka  Bay  gay  wich  the  fluttering 
Stars  and  Stripes  on  three  United  States  warships, 
the  "Ossipee/'  the  "Jamestown,"  and  the  "Resaca," 
while  from  every  staff  and  roof  of  the  village  waved  the 
emblem  of  Russia's  power.  In  front  of  the  old  castle 
on  its  lofty  natural  elevation  were  drawn  the  troops  of 
both  countries,  silently  awaiting  the  first  salute  from 
one  of  the  United  States  ships,  at  which  signal  the  order 
was  given  to  lower  the  castle's  Russian  flag.  Scarcely 
had  the  sound  of  the  American  guns  lost  themselves  in 
echo  when  the  Russian  batteries  boomed  forth,  and  the 
American  flag  gayly  mounted  to  the  top,  while  both 
countries'  guns  sounded  a  duet,  after  which  the  Russian 
governor  formally  resigned  his  badge  of  office  to  Amer- 
ica's representative,  and  the  land  belonged  to  Uncle 
Sam.  That  night  there  was  a  banquet  and  ball  at  the 
castle,  and  then  the  Russian  families,  many  of  whom 
were  cultured,  educated  people,  prepared  to  leave  the 
country  in  possession  of  the  new  owner,  so  that  in  a  few 
months  the  natives  and  United  States  troops,  together 
with  unscrupulous  adventurers,  were  the  sole  occupants. 
Gradually  the  latter  class  were  superseded  by  honest 
prospectors  and  rugged  pioneers  whose  accounts  of  the 
beauty  of  the  land  attracted  the  tourists  who  now  an- 


if 


•%1 


I 


f 


312 


JO.  ROTHROCK. 


P;  ! 


I. 


Hi! 


nually  flood  the  coast  region  where  some  of  the  grandest 
scenery  in  the  world  is  displayed. 

Joseph  T.  Keefer,  who  lived  at  608  Thirteenth  Street, 
Washington,  D.  C,  was  present  at  this  ceremony.  He  ac- 
companied the  Seward  State  Department  expedition  to 
Alaska  in  1867,  as  aid-de-camp  to  Capt.  T.  E.  Ketchum. 
The  flag  that  was  unfurled  by  which  Alaska  was  officially 
and  formally  taken  possession  of  was  the  first  ever  hoisted 
over  Russian  America.  As  far  as  can  be  learned  Mr. 
Keefer  is  the  only  surviving  member  of  the  famous  expe- 
dition, having  been  at  the  time  the  trip  was  made  into  the 
far  North  a  mere  lad  of  seventeen,  while  the  other  mem- 
bers of  the  party  were  well  advanced  in  years. 

According  to  the  best  records  obtainable  the  last 
member  of  the  party  to  perish  was  Jo.  Rothrock,  a 
young  photographer,  who  died  about  ten  years  ago  in  a 
Philadelphia  insane  asylum.  The  poor  fellow  could 
never  get  warm  after  making  a  second  trip  to  Alaska, 
and  while  dying  he  was  wrapped  in  blankets  and  placed 
by  the  furnace,  although  the  heat  of  the  summer  was 
almost  unbearable  to  the  ordinary  person.  No  explana- 
tion was  ever  offered  for  his  strange  condition. 

In  1894  Mr.  Keefer  was  prompted  to  institute  a  search 
for  the  historic  bit  of  bunting  which  carried  him  to 
Alaska.  Greatly  to  his  satisfaction  the  flag  was  found 
in  a  box  behind  the  original  Declaration  of  Independence, 
in  the  State  Department.  Upon  being  unfurled  it  was 
discovered  that  a  large  portion  of  the  blue  field  had  been 
entirely  destroyed  by  moths,  while  the  remainder  of  the 


INDIAN  HOSTILITY. 


313 


ensign  was  in  comparatively  perfect  condition.  It  seems 
that  the  portion  of  the  flag  which  had  been  destroyed 
was  once  saturated  with  human  blood.  The  story  behind 
this  blood  stain  is  harrowing,  but  will  afford  much  satis- 
faction to  all  those  patriotically  inclined.  As  told  by 
Mr.  Keefer,  it  is  as  follows : 

"  When  the  United  States  took  possession  of  Alaska 
it  was  inhabited  by  a  low  class  of  people,  and  aside  from 
the  half-civilized  natives,  there  were  numerous  ticket-of- 
leave  men  and  ex-convicts  from  Russia.  This  latter 
class  knew  very  well  that  when  Americans  came  upon 
the  scene  they  would  have  to  seek  other  climes,  and 
therefore  tried  to  make  our  lot  as  hard  a  one  as  possible. 
They  told  the  credulous  natives  that  we  were  coming  to 
make  slaves  of  them ;  that  having  purchased  the  country 
we  had  almost  bought  in  all  the  inhabitants.  These  wild 
stories  made  some  of  the  Indians  feel  resentful  toward 
us,  and  they  did  everything  to  bother  and  hamper  our 
work.  We  first  hoisted  the  Stars  and  Stripes  on  the  old 
custom-house  in  Sitka,  and  afterward  floated  it  to  the 
breeze  from  a  Fort  Cosmos  flagpole.  While  the  feel- 
ing was  running  strong  against  us,  a  native  happened 
by  the  fort,  and  before  we  knew  it  had  torn  down  the 
precious  piece  of  bunting.  As  he  was  about  to  stamp 
on  it  a  rifle  shot  rang  out,  the  native  whirled  about  and 
fell  across  the  starry  field,  his  life-blood  oozing  from  a 
wound  in  the  temple.  After  this  occurrence  there  were 
no  more  attempts  at  flag  destruction." 

PrincQ  Pemetriw^  Mf^ksontoff  wa§  th^  last  rnjlitary 


^k 


.1* 


in 


K.    ... 


3^4 


BARANOF  CASTLE. 


governor  of  Russian  America,  and  was  the  last  subject 
of  the  Czar  to  disburse  hospitality  in  the  historic  castle. 
Baranof  Castle  was  built  in  1813. 

It  was  situated  on  the  top  of  a  hill  and  commanded  a 
view  of  the  broad  expanse  of  the  ocean  and  of  the  beau- 
tiful harbor,  which  was  studded  with  many  small  islands 
covered  with  the  freshest  of  evergreen  trees  and  a  profu- 
sion of  the  loveliest  and  brightest  verdure.  The  channels 
between  these  islands  admit  of  the  passage  of  the  largest 
ocean  steamers,  and  on  a  sunshiny  day  the  view  is  most 
charming. 

The  castle,  an  imposing  structure,  built  of  logs  of  huge 
dimensions,  was  divided  into  capacious  rooms.  On  one 
side  was  a  banquet  hall  running  the  whole  length  of  the 
building,  and  here,  during  the  occupancy  of  the  Russians, 
many  wild  scenes  of  revelry  were  enacted.  In  order  to 
preserve  this  structure  from  decay,  our  government  ex- 
pended j^ 1 1,000  three  years  ago,  but  just  after  the  work 
was  completed  it  took  fire  through  some  mysterious 
cause  and  was  burned  to  the  ground. 

Many  stories  are  told,  some  of  them  replete  with  wild 
romance  and  crime  of  early  days  when  Russian  barons 
and  beautiful  princesses  passed  days  and  nights  within 
the  castle  in  joyous  living.  It  is  said  that  Olga  Arbuzoff, 
a  niece  of  Governor  Mooraveff,  committed  suicide  by 
thrusting  a  dagger  into  her  heart  on  the  5  th  day  of 
March,  1826,  the  very  day  of  her  marriage  to  Count 
Nicholas  Vassileff,  The  count  was  old,  ugly,  and  of 
coarse  morals,  and  the  lovely  princess  very  naturally 


DOUBLE  SUICIDE. 


315 


hated  him.  Her  uncle,  however,  compelled  her  to  marry 
him,  though  she  insisted  that  she  would  take  her  life  if 
he  persisted  in  his  demands.  The  princess  was  very 
much  in  love  with  a  young  midshipman  named  Demetrius 
Davidoff,  who  was  young,  handsome,  and  an  accomplished 
gentleman,  and  whom  the  governor,  when  he  found  they 
were  in  love  with  each  other,  sent  away  on  a  six  months* 
cruise.  In  the  meantime  the  nuptials  between  the 
princess  and  the  count  were  hurried  to  a  consummation. 
The  very  night  of  the  wedding  the  young  lover  returned 
and  went  immediately  to  the  castle.  As  soon  as  the 
princess  saw  him  she  uttered  a  cry,  and  rushing  into  his 
arms,  snatched  his  dagger  from  its  sheath  and  plunging 
it  into  her  breast,  fell  to  the  floor  dead.  The  horror- 
stricken  youth  immediately  drove  it  into  his  own  heart 
and  fell  dead  by  the  side  of  his  sweetheart.  The  follow- 
ing day  they  were  both  buried  in  the  same  grave.  From 
one  of  the  windows  in  the  banquet  hall  their  last  resting 
place  is  pointed  out,  a  single  Greek  cross  marking  a 
single  mound. 

Having  been  known  as  Russian  America  up  to  this 
time,  a  new  name  had  to  be  found.  **  American  Siberia," 
"  Zero  Islands,'*  and  other  appellations  were  suggested, 
but  the  present  name  was  finally  chosen  on  the  solicita- 
tion of  Sumner.  It  means  the  "  great  land,"  and  was 
the  native  name  for  the  southern  peninsula. 

The  most  informal  military  occupation  was  the  only 
sign  of  the  new  order  of  things  in  Alaska  until  in  1870 
it  was  made  a  collection  district  with  the  port  of  entry 


1 


^4^ 


15 


'^ 


I 


.J 


,•  ii 


■J 

'X 


'    1 

I 


3i6 


FORM  OF  GOVERNMENT. 


,  ii  ^ 


:5 


I 


at  Sitka,  the  ancient  as  well  as  the  modern  seat  of 
government 

A  civil  form  of  government  was  not  provided  for  the 
territory  until  May  17th,  1884.  The  administration  of  the 
law  was  then  put  into  the  hands  of  a  governor.  John  H. 
Kinkead  was  the  first  governor  from  1884  to  1885. 
Then  followed  Alfred  P.  Swineford,  1885  to  1889; 
Lyman  E.  Knapp,  1889  to  1893  ;  James  Sheakley  1893  ^^ 
1897,  and  President  McKinley  has  just  sent  out  Mr. 
J.  G.  Brady,  of  Indiana,  to  hold  the  office  during  what 
will  be  the  most  exciting  period  Alaskan  history  has 
known.  / 

The  territory  has  never  been  represented  in  the 
United  States  Congress  and  the  only  recognition  she 
has  received  from  the  Federal  government  indicative  of 
an  equal  standing  with  other  Territories  was  an  invita- 
tion to  be  represented  at  the  World's  Fair.  Both  the 
Republican  and  Democratic  National  Conventions  have 
received  and  seated  delegates  from  Alaska. 

In  1889  the  Republicans  of  the  territory  drafted  a 
memorial  to  the  Republican  members  of  the  United 
States  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives,  and  as  it 
shows  what  all  parties  in  Alaska  v»'an\:  in  the  shape  of 
legislation  from  the  Federal  govensHient  it  is  interesting. 
It  reads  as  follows :  •  - 

*'We,  the  Republicans  of  Alaska  in  convention  as- 
sembled, respectfully  represent  to  your  honorable  body, 
that  on  this  the  fifth  day  of  November,  1889,  ^  ^^V  when 
the  Republicans  in  the  various  St?^te^  and  Territories  of 


MEMORIAL  TO  CONGRESS. 


317 


the  Union  are  contesting  for  the  principles  of  our  great 
party,  we  are  denied  that  sacred  privilege. 

"  Among  the  great  territories  of  the  West  we  alone 
stand  a  monument  representing  complete  and  utter 
isolation  and  non-representation.  With  an  area  suffi- 
cient to  form  a  dozen  States,  with  resources  unnum- 
bered and  unlimited,  with  no  manner  of  expressing  our 
just  needs  or  to  demand  our  just  rights,  with  a  popula- 
tion of  upwards  of  ten  thousand  whites  and  fifty  thou- 
sand natives,  among  whom  are  many  intelligent  and 
industrious,  we  come  to  you  for  relief. 

"With  no  means  of  acquiring  title  to  property  in 
which  our  capital  is  invested  and  our  labor  is  expended, 
we  ask  the  passage  of  such  laws  as  will  afford  us  relief 
in  this  direction. 

"  With  many  of  our  people  desirous  of  securing  land 
upon  which  they  can  engage  in  farming,  stock-raising, 
dairying,  and  other  pursuits  of  husbandry,  we  ask  that 
the  homestead  laws  be  extended  in  such  manner  as  will 
open  up  this  domain  for  that  class  of  our  citizens. 
I  "  With  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  invested  in 
the  fish  industry  we  ask  the  passage  of  such  laws  as  will 
secure  titles  to  their  property,  and  encourage  the  de- 
velopment of  one  of  our  greatest  resources,  and  one 
which  is  fast  becoming  valuable  to  the  nation  at  large. 

"  With  vast  forests  extending  throughout  the  territory 
we  ask  that  the  present  laws  relative  to  the  cutting  of 
timber  be  so  modified  as  to  allow  it  to  be  used  for  do- 
mestic purposes  by  the  canneries  in  the  packing  and 


^•J 


ij 
i 
I 

•'•II 

r 


-.1 
'J 


I 


fe 


! 


■Hull 


11 ; 


318 


JUDICIARY  OF  ALASKA. 


exportation  of  their  fish,  and  by  parties  actually  engaged 
in  manufacturing  enterprises  within  the  territory,  and 
the  exportation  of  furniture  and  other  wooden-wares, 
etc.,  etc.,  and  manufactured  from  our  native  timber. 

"  The  judiciary  of  Alaska  is  anomalous,  lying  between 
and  dependent  upon  the  general  laws  of  the  United 
States  and  the  general  laws  of  the  State  of  Oregon,  and 
having  no  true  basis  from  which  it  can  be  interpreted. 
Therefore  we  ask  that  a  code  of  laws  be  enacted  for  the 
District  of  Alaska,  suitable  to  our  wants  and  circum- 
stances and  made  applicable  to  our  growing  industries 
and  communities. 

"  To-day  Alaska  stands  alone  among  the  great  terri- 
tories of  the  West  without  a  representative  upon  the 
floor  cf  Congress,  and  we  deem  it  unjust  that  a  longer 
denial  of  the  rights  accorded  other  portions  of  our 
country  should  be  imposed  upon  us." 

In  the  fall  of  1894  this  paper  was  indorsed  by  a 
people's  convention,  held  in  Juneau,  and  Thomas  S. 
Nowell  wrs  chosen  delegate  to  Congress. 

Very  few  people  in  the  United  States,  even  among  the 
more  intelligent  and  educated  classes,  fully  appreciate 
the  immensity  of  the  territor;  which  was  added  to  the 
public  domain  by  the  purchase  of  Alaska.  The  total 
area  of  the  United  States  proper,  including  the  fully 
organized  territories,  is  2,970,000  square  miles.  Alaska 
proper  in  the  mainland  contains  an  area  of  580,107 
square  miles ;  the  islands  of  Alexander  Archipelago,  off 
the  southeastern  coast,  contain  31,205  square  miles,  and 


?aged 
and 
ivares, 

• 

tween 
Jnited 
n,  and 
•reted. 
or  the 
rcum- 
istries 

terri- 
>n  the 
onger 
•f  our 

by  a 
las  S. 

ig  the 
sciate 
o  the 

total 

fully 
laska 
3,1 07 
o,  off 
,  and 


SIZE  OF  ALASKA. 


3^9 


the  Aleutian  Islands,  6,391  square  miles.  In  other  words 
Alaska  with  its  adj  ont  islands  embraces  more  square 
miles  of  territory  than  twenty-one  States  of  the  Union 
east  of  the  Mississippi  River ;  that  is,  all  the  New  Eng- 
land States,  Delaware,  Indiana,  Kentucky,  Maryland, 
Michigan,  Mississippi,  New  Jersey,  New  York,  North 
Carolina,  Ohio,  Pennsylvania,  South  Carolina,  Tennessee, 
Virginia,  and  West  Virginia — States  that  are  represented 
in  Congress  by  forty-two  Senators  and  two  hundred  rep- 
resentatives. The  numerous  islands,  creeks,  and  inlets 
of  Alaska  lengthen  out  its  coast  line  to  7,860  miles,  an 
extent  greater  than  that  of  the  eastern  coast  line  o£  the 
United  States. 


; 
'  1. 


•  ;' 


M 


ml 


m 


I     .'*' 


!^l 


3^     :   CHAPTER  XV.        W 

THE   BOUNDARY   DISPUTE. 

Two  Ends  of  the  International  Dispute— Mt.  St.  Elias  a  Settled  Point— The 
Passage  of  141st  Meridian  Through  the  Gold  Fields— The  Olney- 
Pauncefote  Treaty— The  Evidence  of  Old  Time  Treaties-Behm  or 
Portland  Canal  ?— Canadian  Claims  to  Territory  Administered  by  the 
United  States— Changes  in  Canadian  Map— The  Removal  of  the 
Metlakatla  Indians  from  Canadian  to  United  States  Territory— The 
Possession  of  Juneau  and  Dyea. 

THERE  are  two  distinct  and  separate  features  in  the 
discussion  which  has  been  carried  on  during  recent 
years  between  the  United  States  Department  of  State  and 
the  British  Foreign  Office  anent  the  Alaska  boundary. 
It  is  difficult  to  decide  which  of  these  issues  is  the  more 
important.  The  one  refers  to  the  location  of  the  141st 
meridian  in  its  passage  from  Mt.  St.  Elias  to  the  Arctic 
Ocean.  The  Yukon  gold  fields  lie  about  midway  be- 
tween the  two  extremities  of  this  part  of  the  Alaskan 
boundary  line,  and  in  view  of  the  greatly  enhar-ed  value 
of  this  territory  both  nations  will  insist  on  the  greatest 
accuracy  being  observed  in  its  location.  Inasmuch  as 
the  141st  meridian  is  an  imaginary  line,  indisputably  de- 
fined as  to  its  direction  by  astronomical  considerations  and 
rules,  its  final  placing  is  only  a  question  of  time  and  the 
accuracy  which  is  brought  to  bear  in  placing  the  defining 
monuments  by  the  engineers  making  up  the  dual  com- 
320 


r 


ANGLO-AMERICAN  DISPUTE. 


321 


mission  which  will  eventually  be  appointed  by  the  high 
contending  parties  to  carry  on  the  work. 

The  other  main  feature  of  this  Anglo-American  dis- 
pute refers  to  the  boundary  line  in  its  passage  from 
the  peak  of  Mt.  St.  Elias  in  a  southeasterly  direction 
down  the  coast  to  Portland  Canal,  as  the  United  States 
claims,  or  only  to  Behm  Canal,  as  Canada  proposes. 
This  side  of  the  contention  gains  its  importance  from 
the  fact  that  upon  its  settlement  rests  the  jurisdiction 
oyer  Dyea,  which  controls  the  entrances  to  the  Chilcat 
and  Chilkoot  Passes  and  the  gold  fields  of  the  Yukon, 
and  many  other  points  of  commercial  vantage  on  and 
near  the  coast.  ^ 

v  -  DISPUTED    BOUNDARY   LINE.  ^ 

With  the  intention  of  definitely  clearing  up  the  north- 
ern end  of  the  boundary  dispute,  ex-Secretary  Olney 
and  Sir  Julian  Pauncefote,  the  British  Ambassador  at 
Washington,  drew  up  a  treaty  which  was  to  provide  for 
the  location  of  the  141st  meridian,  and  the  same  was 
Jaid  before  the  Senate  on  February  23d  of  the  present 
y^'ar.  That  the  time  is  ripe  for  a  definite  adjustment  of 
m^'-.e  differences  may  be  seen  from  the  fact  that  in  the 
rn o:.t  recent  map  published  by  the  Dominion  Govern- 
m  r^,  both  Miller  and  Glacier  Creeks  are  claimed  for 
the  British  empire.  If  this  claim  should  be  allowed  to 
Great  Britain,  it  would  mean  that  the  major  part  of  the 
<^jggings  on  Forty-Mile  Creek,  and  nearly  all  on  Sixty- 
Mile  Creek  would  be  on  Canadian  soil,  and  the  owners 


)i 


I  ' 


•*i 


ilii 


'  a 


322 


UNITED  STATES  JURISDICTION. 


thereof  would  be  subject  to  the  onerous  laws  which 
have  recently  been  enacted  by  the  Dominion  Govern- 
ment. But  fortunately  for  the  American  miner  on  the 
Yukon  and  its  tributaries,  the  home  government  does 
not  propose  to  accept  this  Canadian  dictum.  A  recent 
report  of  the  United  States  Surveyors,  as  to  the  bound- 
ary line  in  this  region,  said :  '"  In  substance,  these  deter- 
minations throw  the  diggings  at  the  mouth  of  Forty- 
Mile  Creek  within  the  territory  of  the  United  States. 
The  whole  valley  of  Birch  Creek,  another  most  valuable 
gold-producing  part  ^f  the  country,  is  also  in  the  trjrri- 
tory  of  the  United  Sf^  Most  of  the  gold  is  to  the 

west  of  the  crossing  of  the  141st  meridian,  at  Forty- 
Mile  Creek.  If  we  produce  the  141st  meridian  on  a 
chart,  the  mouth  of  Miller's  Creek,  a  tributary  of  Sixty- 
Mile  Creek,  and  a  valuable  gold  region,  is  five  miles 
west  in  an  air  line,  or  seven  miles  according  to  the  wind- 
ings of  the  stream — ^all  within  the  territory  of  the  United 
States.  In  substance,  the  only  places  in  the.  Yukon 
region  where  gold  in  quantities  has  been  found,  are, 
therefore,  all  to  the  west  of  the  boundary  line  between 
Canada  and  the  United  States." 

These  words  were  written,  of  course,  before  the  dis- 
coveries in  the  Klondike  valley,  which  is  indisputably  far 
within  the  Canadian  territory. 

This  official  utterance  shows  that  the  United  States 
believes  itself  to  have  jurisdiction  over  nearly  all  of  the 
gold-bearing  country  of  the  far  north  that  has  been  thus 
far  discovered,  except  Klondike  Riven 


hich 
ern- 
the 
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cent 
und- 
2ter- 
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ates* 
lable 
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»  the 
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on  a 
ixty- 
niles 
vind- 
nited 
Likon 
,  are, 
iveen 

!  dis- 
lyfar 

tates 

f  the 

thus 


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u 


TERMS  OF  THE  TREATY. 


325 


2 
z 


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H 

O 
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oi 

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< 

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c4 


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u 


Congress  adjourned  without  ratifying  the  treaty  above 
referred  to,  so  that  until  it  reconvenes  there  is  no  chance 
of  further  light  being  thrown  upon  the  subject,  except 
through  surveys  made  by  private  parties,  which  latter, 
of  course,  will  have  to  h^.  proven  and  ratified  before 
they  can  become  a  part  of  an  international  understand- 
ing. On  the  proposed  treaty  being  gone  over  by  the 
Senate's  Committee  on  Foreign  Relations,  it  was  feared 
that  the  clause  in  which  Great  Britain  gives  us  Mt.  St. 
Elias  in  most  gracious  condescension  might  be  a  catch 
by  which  our  acceptance  of  the  mountain  might  be  taken 
as  an  abandonment  of  our  claim  to  a  southeastern 
boundary  within  "  ten  marine  leagues  of  the  windings 
of  the  coast."  Mt.  St.  Elias  is  within  twenty-eight 
miles  of  the  coast,  and  hence  it  is  contended  it  is  Amer- 
ican territory  anyhow.  In  view  of  this  the  Senate  Com- 
mittee on  Foreign  Affairs,  as  a  precautionary  measure, 
recommended  that  the  treaty  be  amended  so  as  to  declare 
specifically  that  the  acceptance  of  the  peak  as  a  bound- 
ary mark  in  determining  the  141st  meridian  shall  not  be 
construed  as  a  concession  of  any  territory  which  the 
United  States  may  claim  under  its  purchase  from  Russia 
along  the  sea-coast.  ^ 

THE   AMENDED   TREATY.  ,, 

The  following  is  a  full  text  of  the  treaty,  as  sent  to 
the  United  States  Senate  and  British  Privy  Council  for 
ratification : 

Article  i. — Each  Government  shall  appoint  one  com- 


'  f 


Hi 


I!! 


i 


t 


326 


IN  CASE  OF  DISAGREEMENT. 


missioner,  with  whom  may  be  associated  such  surveyors, 
astronomers,  and  other  assistants  as  each  Government 
may  elect. 

The  commissioners  shall  at  as  early  a  period  as  practi- 
cal proceed  to  trace  and  mark  under  their  joint  direc- 
tion, and  by  joint  operations  in  the  field,  so  much  of  the 
141st  meridian  of  west  longitude  as  is  necessary  to  be 
defined  for  the  purpose  of  determining  the  exact  limits  of 
the  territory  ceded  to  the  United  States  by  the  treaty  be- 
tween the  United  States  and  Russia,  of  March  30,  1867. 

Inasmuch  as  the  summit  of  Mt.  St.  Elias,  although 
not  ascertained  to  be  in  fact  upon  said  141st  meridian, 
is  so  nearly  concident  therewith  that  it  may  conveniently 
be  taken  as  a  visible  landmark  whereby  the  initial  part 
of  said  meridian  shall  be  established,  it  is  agreed  that 
the  Commissioners,  should  they  conclude  that  it  is  advis- 
able so  to  do,  may  deflect  the  most  southerly  portion  of 
said  line  so  as  to  make  it  range  with  the  summit  of  Mt. 
St.  Elias,  such  deflection  not  to  extend  more  than  twenty 
geographical  miles  northwardly  from  the  initial  point. 

Article  2. — ^The  data  relating  to  determinations  al- 
ready made  at  this  time  by  either  of  the  two  Govern- 
ments concerned,  of  points  on  or  near  the  141st  meridian 
for  the  purpose  of  fixing  its  position,  shall  be  submitted 
by  each  Government  to  the  Commissioners,  who  shall 
decide  which  of  the  results  of  the  determination  shall  be 
adopted  by  them. 

In  case  of  disagreement  between  the  Commissioners 
as  to  the  correct  geographical  co-ordinates  of  one  and 


'!i 


RATIFICATION  OF  THE  TREATY. 


327 


the  same  point  determined  by  either  of  the  two  Govern- 
ments, separately,  a  position  midway  between  the  two 
locations  in  question,  of  the  141st  meridian,  shall  be 
adopted,  provided  the  discrepancy  between  them  shall 
not  exceed  1 ,000  feet.  e. '.    : 

In  case  of  a  greater  discrepancy  a  new  joint  determi- 
nation shall  be  made  by  the  Commissioners. 

Article  3. — The  location  of  the  141st  meridian  as 
determined  hereunder  shall  be  marked  by  intervisible 
objects,  natural  or  artificial,  at  such  distances  apart  as 
the  Commissioners  shall  agree  upon,  and  by  such  addi- 
tional marks  as  they  shall  deem  necessary,  and  the  line 
when  and  where  thus  marked,  in  whole  or  in  part,  shall 
be  deemed  to  permanently  define  for  all  international 
purposes  the  141st  meridian  mentioned  in  the  treaty  of 
March  30,  1867,  between  the  United  States  and  Russia, 
and  in  the  treaty  of  February  28-16,*  1825,  between 
Great  Britain  and  Russia. 


)4 
i 


f%    i 


I 


WORK  OF   THE   COMMISSIONERS. 

The  location  of  the  marks  shall  be  described  by 
such  views,  maps,  and  other  means  as  the  Commis- 
sioners shall  decide  upon,  and  duplicate  records  of 
these  descriptions  shall  be  attested  by  the  Commis- 
sioners jointly  and  be  by  them  deposited  with  their 
respective  Governments,  together  with  their  final  re- 
port hereinafter  mentioned. 


*  That  is,  February  i6,  old  style,  the  Russians  at  that  time  not  using  the  reformed 
calendar. 


.:.■:*.     -■v,'«vA'-i.Nv.V_.N    . 


328 


THE  LINE  OF  DEMARKATION. 


ApTiCLE  4. — Each  Government  shall  bear  the  ex- 
penses incident  to  the  employment  of  its  own  ap- 
pointees and  of  the  operations  conducted  by  them, 
but  the  cost  of  material  used  in  permanently  marking 
the  meridian,  and  of  its  transportation,  shall  be  borne 
jointly  and  equally  by  the  two  Governments. 

Article  5. — The  Commissioners  shall  diligently 
prosecute  the  work  to  its  completion  and  they  shall 
submit  to  their  respective  Governments  from  time  tc 
time,  and  at  least  once  in  every  calendar  year,  a  joint 
report  of  progress,  and  a  final  comprehensive  report 
upon  the  completion  of  the  whole  work. 

The  present  convention  shall  be  duly  ratified  by  the 
President  of  the  United  States  of  America,  by  and 
with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate  thereof, 
and  by  her  Britannic  Majesty,  and  the  ratifications 
shall  be  exchanged  at  Washington  or  in  London  as 
soon  as  possible  within  twelve  months  from  the  date 
hereof. 

In  faith  whereof,  we,  the  respective  plenipotentiaries, 
have  signed  this  convention  and  have  hereunto  afiftxed 
our  seals." 

Done  in  duplicate  in  Washington,  the  thirtieth  day 
of   January,  one   thousand   eight  hundred  and  ninety- 

^         *  Richard  Olney.  [Seal.] 

Julian  Pauncefote.     [Seal.] 

Up  to  1884  both  countries  were  practically  at  one  as 
to  the  boundary  line  from  Mt.  St.  Elias  to  the  southeast. 


TEN  MARINE  LEAGUES. 


329 


According  to  the  terms  of  the  treaty  between  Russia  and 
Great  Britain,  the  United  States,  in  purchasing  Alaska  in 
1867,  acquired  all  of  Russia's  rights.  In  describing  the 
southeastern  boundary  the  Anglo-Russian  treaty  reads: 

TERMS   OF  THE   TREATY.  • 

"The  line  of  demarkation  between  the  possessions 
of  the  high  contracting  parties  upon  the  coast  of  the 
continent  and  the  islands  of  America  to  the  northwest 
shall  be  drawn  in  the  following  manner :  Commencing 
from  the  southernmost  point  of  the  island  called  Prince 
of  Wales  Island,  which  point  lies  in  the  parallel  of 
54  degrees  40  minutes  north  latitude,  and  between  the 
131st  degree  and  the  133d  degree  of  west  longitude,  the 
same  line  shall  ascend  to  the  north  along  the  channel 
called  Portland  Channel,  as  far  as  the  point  of  the  con- 
tinent where  it  strikes  the  56th  degree  of  north  latitude  ; 
from  this  last-mentioned  point  the  line  of  demarkation 
shall  follow  the  summit  of  the  mountains  situated  par- 
allel to  the  coast  as  far  as  the  point  of  intersection  of 
the  141st  degree  of  west  longitude  (of  the  same 
meridian),  and  finally,  from  the  said  point  of  inter- 
section, the  said  meridian  line  of  the  141st  degree,  in  its 
prolongation  as  far  as  the  frozen  ocean,  shall  form  the 
limit  between  the  Russian  and  British  possessions  on  the 
continent  of  America  to  the  northwest. 

LIMIT   OF   BRITISH    POSSESSIONS. 

"Whenever  the  summit  of  the  mountains  which  ex- 
tend in  a  direction  parallel  to  the  coast  from  the  56th 


Ui 


-r 


!, 


I 


.1, 


il 


!J' 


f 


u 


lii^ 


IK, 


Hi! 


III 


330 


UNITED  STATES  POSSESSIONS. 


degi«-e  of  north  latitude  to  the  pouit  of  intersection  of 
the  141st  degree  of  west  longitude  shall  prove  to  be  at 
the  distance  of  more  than  ten  marine  leagues  from  the 
ocean,  the  limit  between  the  British  possessions  and  the 
line  of  coast  which  is  to  belong  to  Russia,  as  above 
mentioned  (that  is  to  say,  the  limit  to  the  possessions 
ceded  by  this  convention),  shall  be  formed  by  a  line  par- 
allel to  the  winding  of  the  coast,  and  which  shall  never 
exceed  the  distance  of  ten  marine  leagues  therefrom." 

On  all  maps  from  1825  down  to  1884  the  boundary 
line  had  been  shown  as,  in  general  terms,  parallel  to  the 
winding  of  the  coast  and  thirty-five  miles  from  it. 

Now,  however,  the  Canadians  claim  that  as  there  is  no 
chain  of  mountains  "parallel  to  the  coast"  from  the  head 
of  Portland  Canal,  northwest,  that  the  language  of  the 
treaty  calls  for  the  placing  of  this  line  on  the  summits  c 
those  mountains  that  are  nearest  to  it ;  this  would  bring 
the  line  fairly  down  to  the  ocean  itself,  and  hardly  leave 
more  than  a  suggestion  of  mainland  possession  for  the 
United  States. 

That  claim  is  very  properly  disputed  by  our  people. 
It  seems  to  me  quite  clear  that  the  Russians,  when  they 
developed  this  boundary  in  1825,  having  full  knowledge 
of  the  cou-ntry,  which  the  British  did  not,  made  that  ten- 
marine  league  limit  to  insure  themselves  against  being 
cut  off  from  absolute  control  of  the  coast  in  question ; 
that  control  they  were  bound  to  have,  and  they  easily 
secured  it  in  this  treaty ;  they  also  exercised  it.  The 
Russians  knew  that  no  continuous  mountain  chain  was 


ll' 


OBJECT  OF  THE  CANADIANS. 


331 


there,  although  the  only  good  charts  of  that  region  in 
1825,  were  Vancouver's,  and  indicated  such  a  range. 
These  maps  of  Vancouver  were  the  ones  studied  in 
framing  the  convention,  and  guided  the  British. 

The  first  suggestion  on  the  part  of  Canada  that  we 
did  not  hold  this  "thirty  mile  strip,"  was  durl:ig  the 
Cassiar  mining  rush  up  the  Stickeen  River  from  the  coa«?t, 
in  1876-77.  A  Canadian  customs  house  was  hastily  put 
up  at  the  mouth  of  that  river,  and  duties  were  levied  ; 
but  our  miners  denied  the  levy — declared  that  it  was 
made  on  American  territory,  and  the  Canadians  then 
moved  their  custom  house  up  to  a  point  full  thirty  miles 
above  the  mouth;  there  they  were  secure,  and  the  duties 
were  collected. 

The  object  of  the  Canadians  in  pushing  this  claim  is 
to  have  control  of  the  mouths  of  the  Stickeen,  Chilkaht 
and  Tahko  Rivers,  and  the  control  of  the  deep-water 
ocean  inlets  between  the  foot  of  Mt.  St.  Elias  and  Ft. 
Simpson.  As  it  is,  we  command  all  practical  ingress  and 
egress  from  that  British  American  region  above  the  56th 
degree  of  north  latitude,  from  and  to  the  sea. 

American  prospectors  have  evidence  of  great  mineral 
wealth  in  the  ravines  and  ledges  of  this  "thirty-mile 
strip,"  which  belongs  to  Alaskan  territory ;  they  have 
been  pushing  the  State  Department  for  several  years  to 
settle  definitely  the  boundary  line.  The  Canadians  have 
thus  far  outgeneraled  our  people  by  staving  off  the  set- 
tlement, and  getting  a  joint  commission  appointed,  in 
1892,  which  was  not  permitted  to  define  the  line,  but  to 


.  * 
1  \  y 


h 


':^ 


rawer 


ici 


K 


332 


INTERPRETATION  OF  TREATY. 


gather  data.  This  commission  was  appointed  in  Au- 
gust, 1892,  and  it  was  terminated  on  the  ist  day  of  Jan- 
uary, 1895. 

In  this  way  Canadian  engineers  have  been  permitted 
to  accurately  inspect  and  survey  every  foot  of  our  coast 
line  in  that  "thirty-mile  strip,"  and  locate  every  topo- 
graphical feature  of  its  mountains,  hills,  plains  and  val- 
leys. This  gives  them  a  great  advantage  not  hitherto 
possessed  by  them. 

The  Canadians,  with  great  shrewdness,  in  1 884,  began 
to  work  upon  an  interpretation  of  Article  I,  of  that  Treaty 
of  Cession  from  Russia  to  the  United  States,  March  1 3, 
1867,  which  defines  the  limits  of  the  regions  conveyed. 
That  boundary  between  the  British  possessions  and 
Alaska,  as  specified  in  this  Treaty  of  Cession,  is  precisely 
word  for  word  as  defined  in  that  convention  betv/een 
Russia  and  Great  Britain  of  February  28,  1825,  as  given 
above. 

In  1884  an  official  Canadian  map  showed  a  marked 
deflection  in  this  line  at  its  south  end.  Instead  of  pass- 
ing up  Portland  Canal  (as  the  Portland  "Channel"  men- 
tioned above  is  now  always  called),  this  Canadian  map 
showed  the  boundary  as  passing  up  Behm  Canal,  an 
arm  of  the  sea  some  sixty  or  seventy  miles  due  west  of 
Portland  Canal,  this  chan^^e  having  been  made  on  the 
bare  assertion  that  the  words  *'  Portland  Channel,"  as 
inserted,  were  an  error.  By  this  change  the  line  and  an 
area  of  American  territory  about  equal  in  size  to  Con- 
necticut was  transferred  to  British  territory. 


LATEST  OFFICIAL  MAP. 


333 


There  are  three  facts  which  militate  acrainst  this 
seizure.  In  the  first  place,  the  British  Admiralty, 
when  surveyincr  the  northern  limit  of  the  British  Colum- 
bian possessions  in  1868,  one  year  after  the  cession  of 
Alaska,  surveyed  Portland  Canal  and  not  Behm  Canal, 
thus  by  implication  admitted  this  canal  as  the  boundary 
line.  (2)  The  region  now  claimed  by  British  Columbia 
was  at  that  time  occupied  by  a  military  post  of  the  United 
States  without  objection  or  protest  on  the  part  of  British 
Columbia.  (3)  Annette  Island,  in  the  middle  of  this 
region,  was,  by  an  Act  of  Congress  four  years  ago,  set 
apart  as  a  reservation  for  the  use  of  the  Metlakatla 
Indians,  who  sought  asylum  under  the  American  flag  to 
escape  annoyances  experienced  under  the  Canadian  gov- 
ernment, and  the  British  government  did  not  enter  any 
protest 

THE   GRAB  AT  LYNN   CANAL. 

Of  vastly  more  importance  than  the  preceding  is  the 
grab  made  at  Lynn  Canal,  the  northernmost  extension 
of  the  Alexander  Archipelago,  which  runs  north  of 
Juneau,  and  is  the  land  outlet  for  the  Yukon  trade.  The 
official  Canadian  map  of  1884  carried  the  boundary  line 
around  the  head  of  this  canal ;  another  Canadian  map 
three  years  later  carried  the  line  across  the  head  of  the 
canal  in  such  a  manner  as  to  throw  r:s  head-waters  into 
British  territory;  still  later,  Can  idian  maps  carry  the 
line  not  across  the  head  of  the  canal,  but  cross  near  its 
mouth,  some  sixty  or  seventy  miles  south  of  the  former 
line  so  as  to  practically  take  in  Juneau,  or,  at  least,  all  the 


1 


1; 


M 


! 


'■•l 


334 


SUB-PORT  OP  ENTRY. 


land  immediately  back  of  it.  And  the  very  latest  official 
map,  just  published  at  Ottawa,  while  it  runs  no  line  at 
all  southeast  of  Alaska,  prints  the  legend  **  British 
Columbia"  over  portions  of  the  Lynn  Canal  that  are 
now  administered  by  the  United  States.  In  fact,  the 
It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that  these  aggres- 
sions of  Great  Britain,  or  rather  Canada  acting  for  Great 
Britain,  are  largely  on  paper,  as  the  United  States,  while 
negligent  of  Alaska,  has  never  abandoned  its  three  ma- 
rine leagues  claim,  and  hence  the  grabs  have  not  yet 
been  incorporated  la  Canadian  territory.  The  probable 
futility  of  these  ten  years  of  effort  since  1887  is  shown 
in  the  fact  that  Dyea,  which  Secretary  Gage  designated 
the  other  day  as  a  sub-port  of  entry  in  the  Juneau  dis- 
trict, is  well  within  the  lines  of  Canada,  according  to 
British  claims  in  1887  and  in  1897,  and  yet  they  have 
done  nothing  to  molest  United  States  administration 
there  nor  United  States  control  of  Lynn  Canal,  nor  of 
the  Chilkoot  Pass. 


liipi 


CHAPTER    XVI. 


THE    PRIBYLOV,    OR   FUR   SEAL   ISLANDS  OF   ALASKA. 

Chase  of  the  Sea  Otter-:-Pribylov's  Discovery — The  Seal  Island — Educating 
the  Young — System  of  Reproduction — Movements  of  Seal  Herds — 
Male  Seals  Fighting — Killing  Bachelor  Seals — Shooting  and  Spear- 
ing— Killing  Young  Males  Only — Blaine's  Plan — plunders — Vain 
Efforts  at  Pension — The  Boundary  Question. 

ONE  of  the  most  interesting  and  valuable  features  of 
the  Russian-American  purchase  by  our  govern- 
ment in  1867,  was  that  fur  seal  industry  of  Alaska,  as 
embodied  then,  on  the  Pribylov  Islands  in  Bering  Sea; 
and  it  is  remarkable  that,  at  the  time  of  the  transfer  of 
this  territory,  very  little  or  nothing  was  known  of  it  in 
this  country,  even  to  a  single  soul. 

It  was  my  fortune  to  land  on  the  Seal  Islands  in  April, 
1872,  as  the  agent  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution  and  the 
Treasury  Department,  for  the  sp  ial  purpose  of  making 
a  study  of  these  animals  and  collection'^.  During  the 
seasons  of  187 2-* 74  and  '76  inclusive,  1  give  the  rook- 
eries my  undivided  attention,  and  again  in  1890,  by  the 
authority  of  Congress,  I  again  visited  them.  T  have, 
therefore,  by  the  accident  of  my  life,  been  the  tirst  to 
publish  a  succinct  and  connected  life  history  of  these 
animals  and  their  habitat ;  this  study  of  the  fur  sp-l  put 
forth  by  me  in  1874-82,  has  been  confirmed  and  un- 
changed by  the  review  of  many  naturalists  who  have 
come  after  me. 

335 


!    J:i 


II 


I 


t 


\\: 


i 


33^ 


CHASK  OF  THE  SEA  OTTER. 


But,  while  the  life  and  nature  of  the  fur  seal  have  not 
varied  in  its  details,  yet  the  condition  of  the  herds  on  the 
Pribylov  Islands  has  altered  so  much  since  the  date  of 
my  earliest  work,  as  to  be  fairly  described  by  a  single 
word  to-day,  *'  ruined  ".  The  fierce  greed  of  man  has 
well  nigh  ruined  the  industry — it  will  do  so,  as  matters 
are  now  in  hand  at  Washington  and  Ottawa. 

The  fact  that  I  have  been  fortunate  enough  to  see  these 
Pribylov  fur  seal  herds  before  they  were  decimated  by 
the  hand  of  man,  and  to  have  made  indelible  records  of 
their  fine  form  and  condition  at  that  time,  recurs  with 
great  pleasure  to  me  whenever  I  now  take  the  subject  up. 

The  chase  of  the  sea  otter  by  Russian  and  Cossack 
"  promyshlineks "  or  hunters,  opened  Kamschatka  to 
them,  and  then  Alaska  was  discovered  in  turn  by  Bering, 
during  1741-42 :  a  horde  of  eager  sea  otter  hunters 
followed  him,  so  that  by  1 762  they  had  located  the  Aleu- 
tian Islands  and  progressed  as  far  east  as  Kodiak.  By 
1 780,  the  abundant  supply  of  sea  otter  in  Alaskan  waters 
ceased,  and  the  Russian  fur  hunters  began  seriously  to 
consider  what  was  next  in  order.  They  found  that  the 
Chinese  market  made  a  good  demand  for  fur  seal  skins, 
and  that  as  many  as  could  be  secured  at  any  one  season 
never  affected  the  price.  The  manager  of  the  Oonalas- 
kan  district  of  the  Aleutian  Chain,  for  one  of  the  several 
trading  companies,  determined  to  search  for  the  landing 
place  of  these  animals,  either  in  the  Bering  Sea  north 
of  the  Aleutian  passes  or  south  in  the  Pacific ;  he  noted 
the  fact,  that  every  June  and  July  great  numbers  of  fur 
seals  were  seen  swimmi«^g  north  through  these  passes, 


i 


PRIBYI^OV'S  DISCOVERY. 


337 


I 


not 

the 

te  of 

|ngle 

has 

tters 


and  every  October  and  November  they  swam  back  again 
through  these  same  channels  into  the  broad  waste  of  the 
Pacific  Ocean  out  of  the  Sea  of  Bering. 

The  old  Aleut  shamans  also  had  a  legend  that  the  fur 
seals  bred  on  an  island  in  Bering  Sea,  somewhere  north 
of  the  Island?  of  Oomnak  and  Oonalaska,  but  where, 
they  could  not  say.  So,  thus  stimulated,  Russian  search 
was  made  with  great  energy,  chiefly  in  the  Ocean,  south, 
rather  than  in  Bering  Sea,  north,  for  these  Islands  upon 
which  the  fur  seal  must  breed,  as  its  antarctic  brother  did 
in  the  southern  hemisphere. 

Finally,  after  six  years  of  steady  search,  Captain  Gear- 
man  Pribylov,  commanding  a  small  sloop,  the  "Saint 
George  ",  ran  upon  the  object  of  his  desire  in  a  thick  fog 
one  close,  dull  day  in  July,  1 786.  He  had  discovered  the 
breeding  islets  of  the  Alaskan  fur  seal,  and  the  group 
has  ever  since  been  known  under  his  name.  The  dis- 
covery of  Pribylov  could  not  be  kept  secret ;  a  dozen 
vessels  sailed  with  hunters,  in  his  wake,  and  from  1787 
until  1 804,  the  butchery  and  waste  of  life  on  these  islands 
was  something  brutal  and  greedy  beyond  all  record. 

The  whole  Russian- American  territory  passed  by  order 
of  the  Emperor  Paul  into  the  hands  of  a  single  corpora- 
tion in  1799  :  by  1804,  the  iron-hand  of  old  Baranov  was 
laid  upon  the  Pribylov  Islands,  and  this  cruel  killing  was 
then  and  there  checked. 

Very  soon  these  seal  islands  of  Alaska  became  the 
sole  solid  financial  backing  of  the  Russian-American 
Company  ;  but,  as  the  business  of  the  company  grew 
more   and  more  embarrassed  by  bad  management  at 


'1 

:| 

m 

i 


■■..  .t  I... 


338 


THE  SEAL  ISLANDa 


Sitka,  even  these  sources  of  revenue  failed  to  float  the 
corporation. 

The  Pribylov  group  of  seal  islands  consists  of  two 
small  islands,  St..  Paul  and  St.  George,  with  two  islets, 
Otter  and  Walrus  Islands,  which  are  ranged  around  St. 
Paul,  the  former  six  miles  south  and  the  latter  six  miles 
east.  St.  Paul,  which  has  only  thirty-three  square  miles 
of  superficial  area,  with  forty-two  miles  of  shore,  is  the 
largest  of  the  quartette ;  St.  George  has  twenty-seven 
square  miles  of  superficial  area  and  twenty-nine  miles 
of  coast  line  ;  Otter  Island  about  one  square  mile,  and 
Walrus  Islet  a  mere  rock  of  less  than  five  acres  of  sur- 
face just  elevated  above  the  surf  line. 

St.  Paul  is  the  chief  resort  of  the  fur  seal ;  it  held  in 
1872-74  just  seventeen-eighteenths  of  the  entire  num- 
ber of  4,500,000  fur  seals  of  all  ages  which  I  ascertained 
to  be  on  the  fifteen  different  "  rookeries  "  or  breeding 
grounds  that  are  well  known  on  the  islands.  This 
group  of  seal  islands  is,  in  round  numbers,  200  miles 
distant  from  the  nearest  point  of  the  mainland  of 
Alaska,  Cape  Newenham,  Bristol  Bay ;  and  Oonalaska 
Island  of  the  Aleutian  Chain,  is  about  the  same  distance 
from  it  in  the  south,  while  St  Matthew  Island,  almost 
equidistant,  in  the  north.  The  Russian  Seal  Islands  are 
750  miles  directly  to  the  westward,  and  they,  in  turn,  are 
situated  about  100  miles  off  the  Kamschatkan  coast  in 
this  same  sea  of  Bering. 

On  the  Pribylov  Islands  the  fur  seal  found,  ages  ago, 
that  perfect  isolation  from  deadly  enemies  like  men  and 
polar  bears,  which  combined  with  a  cool,  moist,  sunless 


EDUCATING  THE  YOUNG. 


339 


I'i 


climate,  makes  its  existence  secure  on  this  earth.  Its 
intelligence  prevented  its  landing  to  breed  and  rest  even 
for  an  hour  on  any  other  land  in  all  Alaska  or  the  lower 
Northwest  coast.  But,  since  man  finally  discovered  its 
retreat  in  1 786,  the  fur  seal  has  had  several  close  calls 
to  utter  extermination.  One  is  now  pending  at  this  hour. 

The  fur  seal  is  the  best  organized  of  all  amphibians  ; 
it  is  equally  at  home  on  land  or  .in  the  sea.  But  it  draws 
all  its  sustenance  by  fishing  and  repairs  to  the  land  for 
the  chief  purpose  of  breeding.  It  cannot  bring  forth  its 
young  in  the  water  ;  the  new  born  fur  seal  cannot  swim, 
and  requires  a  land  residence  of  three  to  four  months  after 
birth,  before  it  can  go  to  sea.  Indeed,  it  cannot  swim 
when  it  first  blunders  into  the  water.  It  has  to  apply 
itself  diligently  to  learning  how  to  keep  its  head  above 
the  surface  by  many  successive  lessons  before  it  suc- 
ceeds. These  lessons  are,  however,  self-imposed.  The 
little  fellow's  instinct  tells  it  that  this  must  be  accom- 
plished. When  he  once  becomes  able  to  master  his 
body  so  as  to  sport  easily  in  the  water,  the  young  seal 
rapidly  reaches  the  perfect  stroke,  and  becomes  the 
most  skillful  of  all  watermen. 

The  fur  seals  are  born  about  equal  in  number  as  to 
sex  :  the  males  and  females  grow  for  the  first  year  with 
little  difference  in  size,  shape  or  color.  Then  the  males 
begin  to  lengthen  out  and  increase  their  weight  far  in 
excess  of  the  females.  When  the  male  is  mature  at 
six  years,  he  will  weigh  400  to  500  pounds,  have  a  length 
of  six-and-one-half  to  seven  feet,  while  the  female  is 
aduH  at  three  years,  and  weighs  but  eighty  or  ninety 


1  ■ 


I, 

i 
hi 


in 


340 


SYSTEM  OF  REPRODUCTION. 


i    / 


pounds,  with  a  length  of  body  scarcely  exceeding  three- 
and-a-half  feet. 

The  order  and  system  of  reproduction  of  the  fur  seal 
on  the  Pribylov  rookeries  or  breeding  grounds  is  a  very 
remarkable  and  interesting  one.  No  other  wild  animal 
has  the  elaborate  and  regular  method  about  its  move- 
ments during  its  breeding  season  that  is  characteristic  of 
the  fur  seal ;  and,  with  the  single  exception  of  those 
immense  herds  of  the  buffalo  on  our  western  plains  as 
seen  by  our  pioneers  sixty  or  seventy  years  ago,  no 
other  mammal  of  a  high  organization  ever  massed  itself 
in  such  great  numbers  that  the  knowledge  of  a  naturalist 
can  cite. 

The  Pribylov  Islands*  of  Alaska,  the  Commander 
group  of  Kamschatka,  and  a  small  rock  in  the  Okotsk 
Sea  are  the  only  known  breeding  places  of  the  fur  seal 
in  the  Northern  Hemisphere.  In  the  Antarctic  there  are 
over  twenty  well-known  islands  which  were  during  1786 
and  1 814  visited  as  fur  seal  resorts,  until  by  1860-62  they 
were  practically  swept  clean  of  this  seal  life  by  the  greed 
of  human  butchers,  and  to  this  day  the  Antarctic  rook- 
eries are  desolate — only  a  scattered  band  or  so  of  tens 
and  hundreds  now  is  found  there,  in  place  of  those  hun- 
dreds of  thousands  and  millions  that  originally  existed. 

Let  us  follow  the  movements  of  the  fur  seal  as  it 
boldly  and  quietly  orders  them  on  the  Pribylov  Islands. 
The  breeding  season  closes,  and  the  pups  are  all  weaned 
by  the  middle  or  end  of  October,  then  the  fur  seals  all 
leave  the  islands.  Striking  out  due  south  directly  for  the 
Pacific  Ocean  through  the  large  passes  of  the  Aleutian 


^ 


o 


n 


2S 


M 


n 


^i 


I  *'      ( 


1 


'     1 18 


MOVEMENTS  OF  SEAL,  HERDS. 


343 


Chain ;  they  journey  in  the  open  ocean  south-east  by 
east,  so  that  by  the  middle  or  end  of  December,  their 
advance  agents  are  in  sight,  off  the  California,  Oregon, 
and  Washington  coasts  ;  then  the  herd  turns  up  along 
the  trend  of  the  northwest  coast,  back  into  Bering  Sea, 
so  as  to  return  as  a  body  by  the  4th  to  15th  of  July ; 
the  old  males  are  all  on  the  islands  as  early  as  the  ist 
of  June,  and  all  classes  are  back  by  the  20th  of  July. 

In  this  order  of  progression,  the  fur  seal  never  lands  on 
any  land,  inlet,  rocks,  or  reef,  while  going  from  and  re- 
turning to  the  islands  of  its  birth ;  it  makes  an  oceanic 
transit  of  over  five  thousand  miles  in  this  migration,  and 
subsists  upon  pelagic  fishes  and  squid  and  crustaceans 
while  out  in  the  deep  sea;  then,  when  going  up  the 
coast  on  soundings,  it  feeds  fat  upon  the  runs  of  herring, 
cod,  sculpin,  salmon,  and  numerous  other  piscine  forms. 

The  adult  male  fur  seal  lands  first  of  all  his  kind,  and 
alone ;  he  "hauls  out"  on  the  breeding  ground,  or  "rook- 
ery", as  early  as  the  6th  of  May,  and  all  of  his  class  are 
there  by  the  ist  of  June.  The  first  females  never  arrive 
before  the  4th  to  loth  of  June,  and  the  great  body  of 
their  kind  do  not  put  in  an  appearance  until  the  loth  to 
20th  of  July. 

The  normal  ratio  of  males  to  females  on  these  breed- 
ing grounds  is  about  fifteen  or  twenty  of  the  latter  to 
one  of  the  former.  This  makes  the  fur  seal  an  eminent 
polygamist.  The  breeding  grounds  rise  on  rocky  slopes 
directly  from  the  waters  edge,  above  tide  and  surf  wash, 
and  are  barred  from  all  approach  to  the  young  males  or 
"  bachelors  "  by  the  determined  opposition  of  the  adult 


j; 


1 


344 


MALE  SEALS  FIGHTING. 


and  old  males,  or  "seacatchie."  The  adult  male  only,  can 
hold  his  own  in  fighting  with  his  species.  He  must  attain 
the  age  of  six  years  and  have  a  weight  of  at  least  350 
pounds,  before  he  can  ever  presume  to  successfully  battle 
with  an  older  male. 

From  the  hour  that  the  male  fur  seal  hauls  out  onto 
his  station  early  in  May  until  the  end  of  the  breeding 
season  early  in  August,  he  never  leaves  his  post  on  that 
ground  for  a  single  moment,  day  or  night.  In  other 
words  he  presents  the  anomalous  spectacle  of  enduring 
a  fast  of  three  consecutive  months  and  sustaining  himself 
during  this  long  period  without  food  or  water,  by  the 
absorption  of  his  own  fat.  During  this  period  he  is  sel- 
dom asleep ;  he  is  incessantly  on  the  move,  and  until  the 
arrival  of  the  females  in  June  and  July,  he  is  busy  a  large 
portion  of  the  time  in  fierce  fighting  with  his  rivals  which 
occupy  the  posts  around  him. 

The  females  land  in  obedience  to  the  necessity  of 
giving  birth  to  their  offspring  on  land,  and  they  seldom 
come  ashore  until  the  hour  of  their  delivery  is  close  at 
hand.  They  give  birth  to  but  one  pup,  twins  having  never 
been  recorded.  The  time  of  the  gestation  is  almost  ex- 
actly twelve  months.  After  the  pup  is  born,  the  mother 
seal  rests  a  few  days,  suckles  her  young  one,  then  goes 
off  to  sea  to  feed  on  fishing  grounds,  often  100  to  180 
miles  distant.  She  will  be  absent  two  or  four  days  be- 
fore returning ;  she  singles  out  her  own  pup  and  permits 
no  other  to  nurse  from  her  nipples.  Again  she  remains 
only  a  few  days,  ere  she  puts  off  to  the  feeding  grounds 
at  sea,  to  return  as  before.     This  going  and  coming  to 


i! 


ni' 


KILLING  BACHKLOR  SEALS. 


345 


feed  and  nurse  the  pup,  continues  with  that  mother  seal 
until  she  weans  her  offspring  in  October  or  November. 
She  weans  it  by  abruptly  abandoning  it  to  its  own  devices. 

The  young  males  from  one  year  old  up  to  six,  are 
obliged  to  keep  away  from  the  rookeries  by  their  fear  of  the 
consequences  of  meeting  their  old  sires.  They  haul  out 
on  the  sand  beaches  and  the  uplands  between  the  breed- 
ing grounds  in  troops  of  hundreds  ?ind  thousands  by 
themselves  ;  they  also,  like  the  females,  feed  at  frequent 
intervals  and  do  not  sustain  any  protracted  fasting  as 
the  breeding  males  do. 

Until  the  development  of  the  open  water  or  •*  pelagic  " 
hunting  of  fur  seals  in  1886  was  made,  the  killing  of 
these  Alaskan  animals  was  confined  to  a  selection  of 
100,000  young  "  bachelors "  on  these  islands  annually: 
but,  when  thv.  pelagic  fleet,  chiefly  Canadian  hunters, 
fairly  got  to  work,  the  pressure  of  death  on  this  fur  seal 
herd  of  the  Pribylov  Islands,  was  too  great.  The  industry 
has  been  ruined,  and  to-day,  the  seals  are  not  one  tenth 
of  their  number,  as  I  found  it  in  1872-74. 

The  practice  of  killing  on  land  was  to  select  out  of  the 
herds  of  young  males  only  the  best  grades,  i.  e.  the  two, 
three,  and  four  year-old  males ;  those  younger  did  not 
possess  as  good  fur  on  their  s.kins :  while  the  older  ones 
had  that  fur  harsh  and  ragged  on  their  necks  or  withers, 
where  it  grows  roughly  like  the  mane  on  a  horse,  and  is 
known  as  a  "wig"  in  sealing  parlance. 

Two  or  three  thousand  of  these  young  males  were 
daily  driven  up  to  the  killing  grounds,  near  the  salt 
houses  on  the  islands,  during  the  season,  June  istto 


I  li 


'  'i 


n 


*  )i 


It' 


% 


I  •! 


346 


SHOOTING  AND  SPEAKING. 


July  20th,  killed  and  skinned  there,  and  the  pelts  cured 
in  large  kenches  or  salt  bins;  then  these  skins  were  rolled 
into  bundles  of  two  skins  each,  corded  up  securely,  and 
so  shipped  to  London,  via  San  Francisco  and  New  York. 
The  pelagic  catch  goes  also  to  London,  via  Victoria  and 
New  York. 

.  If  the  killing  is  properly  conducted  on  land  it  is  a  dis- 
criminate and  legitimate  operation  ;  it  will  not  injure  the 
regular  supply  of  fresh  male  life  for  service  in  the  rook- 
eries, and  no  females  are  ever  disturbed,  much  less 
destroyed  by  this  method.  That  this  land  killing  can  be 
and  has  been  abused  is  true  ;  but  tha  is  the  fault  of  the 
supervision,  and  not  of  the  system. 

The  pelagic  killing  is  done  by  shooting  and  spearing 
fur  seals  in  the  open  waters  of  the  ocean  as  these  ani- 
mals are  feeding  or  sleeping.  A  peculiarity  of  the  fur 
seal  is  that  it  rests  as  comfortably  in  the  water  sleeping 
on  its  back,  with  its  flippers  folded  onto  its  breast  and 
abdomen,  as  it  does  on  the  land.  When  so  resting  at 
sea,  if  a  hunter  drifts  down  upon  it  with  care  as  to  wind, 
so  as  to  come  up  to  it  from  the  leeward,  he  can  get  near 
enough  to  hurl  a  spear  into  its  body  and  secure  its  skin. 
The  seals  also  when  traveling  at  sea  or  feeding,  always 
rise  at  intervals  to  put  their  heads  and  necks  high  out 
above  water  for  several  moments  to  breathe  and  to  sur- 
vey. This  is  the  moment  that  the  hunter  enjoys  to  shoot 
them  in.  He  uses  a  rifle,  but  generally  a  shot  gun  with 
buckshot.  A  great  many  wild  shots  are  made  neces- 
sarily, as  the  weather  and  the  water  combine  to  toss 
the  boat,  and  much  loss  of  life  must  ensue  that  is  not 
tallied  by  the  seal  skins  secured. 


■V 


«        Ml 


KILUNG  YOUNG  MAIZES  ONLY. 


347 


The  present  order  of  killing  on  land  so  as  to  kill 
nothing  but  young  males  has  been  in  vogue  ever  since 
1835  ;  the  pelagic  system  of  hunting  fur  seals  has  been 
understood  ever  since  1874,  but  not  actively  prosecuted 
by  white  men  until  1 886.  -  ■    ■ 

The  combined  work  of  killing  on  land  and  in  the 
water,  therefore,  since  1 886,  has  rapidly  diminished  the 
numbers  of  these  unhappy  animals  ;  so  much  so  that 
their  whole  massing  on  the  islands  this  year  will  not 
equal  the  tenth  part  of  their  fine  form  and  condition 
which  I  recorded  them  as  possessing  in  1872-74.  There 
were  4,500,000  of  them  then. 

In  1887,  amidst  a  general  discord  in  the  ranks  of  our 
people  as  to  whether  we  really  had  any  exclusive  rights 
to  shut  up  the  open  waters  of  Bering  Sea,  and  so  pre- 
vent pelagic  hunting,  three  small  Canadian  schooners 
were  seized  some  forty  or  sixty  miles  distant  from  the 
nearest  land  in  Bering  Sea.  They  were  taken  because 
they  were  engaged  in  the  hunting  of  fur  seals  without  a 
license  from  the  Secretary  of  the  United  States  Treasury, 
agreeably  to  provisions  of  Section  1956,  Revised  Stat- 
utes of  the  United  States. 

After  much  discussion  our  best  lawyers  said  the  seizure 
was  a  violation  of  international  law:  that  Bering  Sea  was 
not  a  mare  clausum,  and  so  Secretary  Bayard  released  the 
schooners  and  began  to  try  and  secure  an  international 
agreement  with  Great  Britain,  so  as  to  regulate  and  check 
this  hunting  of  fur  seals  in  the  open  sea.  Bayard  >vas 
unable  to  carry  out  his  plan  before  his  term  of  office 
ended,  and  on  the  4th  of  March,  1889,  Mr.  Blaine  suc- 


!     i 


'•I 


I 


I 


348 


BLAINE'S  PlyAN. 


ceeded  him.  Instead  of  taking  up  the  course  of  Bayard 
as  it  was  left  to  him,  Blaine  resolved  to  try  another  plan 
of  settlement:  he  revamped  that  claim  of  jurisdiction 
in  the  high  seas  only  so  as  to  cover  the  killing  of  seals,  and 
invented  his  argument  of  contra  bonos  mores.  The 
Canadian's  took  advantage  of  Mr.  Blaine's  want  of  pre- 
cise and  accurate  knowledge  as  to  seal  life  details,  and 
they  furnished  a  reply  to  his  letter  that  simply  crushed 
him.  .       , 

In  1890,  the  writer  of  this  sketch  returned  November 
17th,  from  an  investigation  into  the  condition  of  the 
Alaskan  fur  seal  herds,  having  been  sent  up  again,  as  in 
1874,  by  order  of  a  special  Act  of  Congress.  He  urged 
Mr.  Blaine  to  drop  all  legal  arguments  into  the  jurisdic- 
tion question,  together  with  those  based  on  the  idea  of 
having  a  property  right  in  a  wild  animal,  and  take  up  in- 
stead the  case  of  saving  the  seals  alone,  by  an  agreement 
with  Great  Britain.  He  devised  a  modus  vivendi  by  which 
all  killing  of  seals  on  the  Pribylov  Islands  should  be  pro- 
hibited for  a  term  of  seven  years,  and  all  open  water 
sealing  at  the  same  time  in  the  Bering  Sea,  to  be  declared 
illegal  by  Great  Britain.  Then,  this  done,  to  have  a  joint 
commission  of  experienced  men  to  visit  the  islands  and 
report  fairly  on  the  subject. 

This  proposition  was  bitterly  opposed  by  the  Canadians 
and  also  by  the  lessees  on  our  side,  but  the  sense  and 
decency  of  this  settlement,  when  it  was  made  known  by 
its  author,  was  so  strongly  endorsed  by  public  opinion 
in  Great  Britain  and  this  country,  that  it  was  put  into 
operation  June  15,  1891. 


r^-^ 


■  m 


BI^UNDERS. 


349 


From  this  moment  a  series  of  wretched  and  humiliating 
blunders  have  been  made  by  the  officers  of  our  govern- 
ment, who  have  been  in  charge  of  the  business.  The 
case  of  the  United  States  as  made  up  in  Washington 
contained  all  of  those  idle  legal  claims  of  jurisdiction  and 
property  right.  They  were  openly  opposed  by  our 
ablest  lawyers  in  this  country,  and  by  the  consensus  of 
the  press.  Then,  our  sealing  argument  was  basely  mur- 
dered by  being  brought  down  to  the  low  level  of  making 
an  uninterrupted  plea  that  no  harm  was  ever  done  or 
would  be  done  to  the  seals  by  the  method  of  land  killing, 
while  all  the  most  extravagant  vaporing  about  the  work 
of  pelagic  sealing  was  soberly  incorporated.  This  sad 
mistake  on  our  side,  gave  the  Canadians  their  opportunity: 
and  they  improved  it  so  well,  that  they  secured  the  vic- 
tory. Thus,  they  have  proved  anew  the  truth  of  that 
old  saying,  that  "having  the  strongest  end  of  a  contro- 
versy does  not  signify,  if  your  opponents  have  the  brighter 
men  to  cope  with  you." 

The  award  of  the  Bering  Sea  Tribunal  was  made  on 
August  15,  1893  ;  it  decided  against  our  claims  of  juris- 
diction in  the  open  waters  of  Bering  Sea  ;  it  denied  our 
claims  of  a  property  right  in  a  wild  animal  like  the  fur 
seal ;  it  then  queerly  split  the  difference  between  the 
claims  of  our  agents  for  the  land  butchers  and  those  of 
the  British  for  the  pelagic  butchers.  In  short,  under  the 
regulations,  ordered  by  the  Court,  the  modus  vivendi,  by 
Elliott,  which  is  superseded  by  them,  is  a  real  protection, 
while  the  new  articles  simply  facilitate  the  destruction  of 
the  herd.     Yet,  at  the  time  these  idle  and  costly  regula- 


k'; 


i     f 


.  t 


n 


H 


350 


VAIN  EFFORTS  AT  REVISION. 


tions  were  ordered  by  this  Tribunal,  our  agents  at  Paris 
declared  that  they  had  won  a  great  victory,  and  had 
saved  the  seals  from  pelagic  hunting ! 

These  regulations  of  the  Tribunal  were  first  put  into 
effect  in  the  season  of  1 894.  The  result  of  their  operation 
was  to  demonstrate  their  utter  worthlessness  as  a  means 
of  saving  the  fur  seal  from  indecent  and  cruel  slaughter. 
More  seals  were  killed  at  sea  under  their  license  than 
ever  before  in  the  history  of  the  business.  This  was 
demonstrated  by  those  figures  of  the  catch  beyond  the 
shadow  of  a  doubt.  Then,  ever  since,  our  government 
has  been  trying  to  secure  a  revision  of  the  regulations : 
but,  up  to  the  writing  of  this  chapter,  nothing  has  been 
effected.  Inexperienced  naturalists  and  ignorant  officials 
have,  on  our  side,  so  bungled  the  case,  that  the  Canadians 
have  easily  kept  the  lead  and  still  hold  the  whip  hand,  and 
it  is  safe  to  predict,  that  as  matters  are  being  directed, 
they  will  retain  the  great  advantage  which  they  secured 
at  Paris,  in  1 893.  Therefore,  as  long  as  fur  seals  exist  on 
the  Pribylov  Islands,  the  Canadian  hunter  will  hunt  them 
at  sea :  and  as  far  as  a  source  of  revenue  to  the  public 
treasury  of  the  United  States  goes,  these  fur  bearing 
rookeries  of  the  Pribylov  group  have  ceased  to  be.  They 
are  now  and  have  been  ever  since  1 890,  a  large  annual 
bill  of  expense  to  the  government,  without  a  dollar  of 
revenue  to  balance  the  books. 

Unless  we  free  ourselves  from  the  present  manage- 
ment of  our  fur  seal  case,  which  degrades  our  position 
in  British  eyes  to  the  same  level  of  seal-skinning  and 
gain  that  we  charge  the  Canadian  case  with,  the  com- 


THE  BOUNDARY  QUESTION. 


351 


had 


plete  extermination  of  the  industry  on  the  Pribylov 
Islands  is  right  at  hand  ;  indeed,  the  rookeries  have  been 
commercially  ruined,  and  it  would  require  at  least  ten 
consecutive  years  of  complete  prohibition  of  seal  killing 
on  the  islands  and  in  Bering  Sea,  from  date,  if  they  are 
to  be  restored. 

There  has  been  an  undue  amount  of  talk  about  what 
we  may  demand  of  Great  Britain  in  the  way  of  revising 
these  regulations ;  we  have  no  ground,  moral  or  legal, 
to  make  any  demands  on  Great  Britain.  What  we  had, 
we  lost  entirely  and  forever,  at  Paris,  in  1893  ;  we  fairly 
forced  that  settlement,  and  we  are  bound  to  lay  in  the  bed 
of  our  making.  That  we  were  beaten  at  Paris,  is  humili- 
ating and  galling,  because  we  had  the  best  ground  for 
argument,but  we  frittered  away  our  credit  and  our  prop- 
perty  by  putting  the  business  of  making  up  our  case  for 
the  Tribunal  into  incompetent  hands — so  incompetent 
that  they  did  not  know  that  they  were  beaten  at  each 
and  every  point  when  the  award  was  made. 


N' 


if 


r'' 


I 


I 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

REINDEER   IN  ALASKA. 

Alaskan  Dogs  Must  Go — Introduction  of  Reindeer  by  Rev.  Dr.  Sheldon 
Jackson — Both  Food  and  Raiment — Purchasing  Station  in  Siberia — 
Distribution  in  Alaska — Fleet  of  Foot  and  Easily  Supported — Rein- 
deer Train  Service  to  the  Klondike — Reindeer  Milk  for  Yucon  Babies 
— A  Siberia  n  Moneymaker — Reindeer  to  Harness — Character  of  the 
Fur — Some  Figures  on  the  Reindeer  Industry  in  Finland. 

THE  discovery  of  gold  far  back  in  the  interior  of 
,  Alaska  puts  an  entirely  new  face  on  the  introduc- 
tion of  domestic  reindeer  into  that  country.  The 
movement  was  undertaken  almost  entirely  with  the  ob- 
ject of  affording  an  adequate  food  supply  to  the  natives 
of  the  interior,  whose  ranks  during  recent  years  have 
been  very  much  depleted  through  starvation  and  the 
conditions  which  lead  to  it.  Now,  however,  a  new  use 
has  been  found  for  the  reindeer  in  Alaska,  or  rather 
these  little  animals  will  be  made  useful  in  a  way  that 
was  not  anticipated.  In  Finland  and  Siberian  Russia 
they  perform  the  si*me  duties  which  dogs  do  in  Alaska. 
It  is  now  proposed  to  supersede  the  dogs  with  reindeer. 
The  camps  of  the  Klondike  and  its  neighboring  streams 
are  inaccessible  during  eight  or  nine  months  of  the  year 
except  by  overland  journey,  and  when  they  have  been 
visited  during  the  closed  season  it  has  been  by  couriers 
attended  by  a  dog-train.  Dogs  are  unreliable  and  treach- 
erous, and,  above  all,  require  considerable  food  for  their 
352 


HELP  OF  CONGRESS. 


353 


\ 


support,  which  latter  must  be  carried  along  with  them  in 
some  shape  or  another.  The  reindeer,  on  the  contrary, 
is  a  gentle,  tractable  animal,  and  one  requiring  but  little 
food ;  the  main  article  of  their  diet  consists  of  such 
mosses  and  sprouts  as  are  to  be  found  in  the  Yukon  dis- 
trict all  the  year  round.  For  this  reason  they  will  be  in- 
tensely valuable  to  a  miner,  and  already  scores  of  orders 
for  reindeer  have  been  placed  with  the  government  by 
Klondikers. 

As  the  years  pass  by  it  becomes  more  and  more  evi- 
dent that  the  introduction  of  the  reindeer  into  Alaska 
is  a  complete  success.  At  the  outset  Dr.  Sheldon  Jack- 
son's proposition  to  introduce  the  domestic  reindeer  of 
Siberia  as  a  new  source  of  food  supply  for  the  famished 
Eskimo  of  Arctic  Alaska  was  received  by  so  much  doubt 
and  disfavor  that  Congress  refused  to  furnish  the  neces- 
sary appropriation.  Private  individuals  advanced  a  sum, 
however,  to  put  the  project  on  its  feet.  With  this  sum, 
about  ji2C)00,  Dr.  Jackson  procured  i6  reindeer  in  1891 
and  171  in  1892.  Congress  appropriated  ji6ooo  for  the 
fiscal  year  ending  June,  1894,  to  carry  on  the  work. 
This  was  increased  the  next  year  to  $7500,  and  the  fol- 
lowing year  a  like  sum  granted.  Nearly  400  head  have 
been  purchased  in  Siberia,  and  through  the  birth  of 
fawns  the  number  on  Alaskan  soil  has  been  increased 
to  over  a  thousand.  Heretofore  the  purchasing  of  the 
reindeer  has  been  done  by  Russians,  who  received  a 
commission  at  so  much  per  head. 

The  Secretary  of  State  has  recently  communicated 
with  the  Czar  of  Russia,  requesting  permission  for  the 


■i 


ii 


'i 


sga 


!!■■■ 


mm 


354 


INCREASE  OF   REINDEER. 


Bureau  of  Education  to  station  a  purchasing  agent  with 
one  or  two  herdsmen  at  some  suitable  point  on  the  coast 
of  Siberia  adjacent  to  Alaska.  It  is  presumed  that  this 
request  will  be  granted,  and  this  year  the  Bureau  of 
Education  will  probably  be  able  to  send  its  own  agents 
into  the  field. 

Herds  of  reindeer  are  now  located  at  five  places  in 
Arctic  Alaska — Port  Clarence,  the  main  station,  under 
the  management  of  a  superintendent  appointed  by  the 
Bureau  of  Education;  Cape  Prince  of  Wales,  a  mission 
of  the  Congregational  Church  ;  Cape  Nome,  in  charge 
of  three  experienced  native  Alaskan  apprentices ;  the 
Swedish  mission,  at  Golovin  Bay,  and  St.  James's  Epis- 
copal mission,  on  the  Yukon.  The  number  of  reindeer 
at  these  stations  is  now  i  loo  head.  At  the  main  station, 
called  the  Teller  Station,  during  the  year  22  deer  were 
broken  to  harness,  making  in  all  52  sled  deer  in  the 
herd,  and  much  time  was  given  to  the  training  of  these 
deer  for  freighting  and  travelling  purposes.  In  the  gen- 
eral plan  of  distribution  it  has  been  the  purpose  to 
supply  the  mission  stations  in  the  order  of  their  prox- 
imity to  the  central  herd.  Some  little  difficulty  was 
experienced  with  the  natives,  among  whom  the  report 
was  current  that  only  the  whites  were  to  receive  any 
benefit  from  the  reindeer.  It  was  hard  to  disabuse  their 
minds  of  this  notion,  and  this  was  finally  accomplished 
only  by  lending  several  of  the  more  advanced  of  the 
native  herders  about  100  head  of  deer.  Many  natives 
are  now  coming  into  possession  of  reindeer  of  their  own, 
and  they  take  great  pride  in  their  care.     In  the  future  it 


USE  OF  REINDEER. 


355 


is  proposed  thai  from  two  central  herding  stations,  one 
at  Port  Clarence,  near  Bering's  Strait,  and  another  on  the 
Kuskokwim  River,  north  of  Bristol  Bay,  herds  of  loo 
deer,  with  native  herders,  shall  be  distributed  to  the  vari- 
ous mission  stations.  A  continuous  line  of  herds  will 
then  be  placed  for  the  entire  distance  to  the  importa.it 
stations  at  St.  Michael's,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Yukon 
River.  A  line  of  stations  might  also  be  established 
along  the  Yukon  to  the  gold  stations  at  Forty-Mile 
Creek.  If  two  herds  of  1 500  each  could  be  established 
at  the  two  main  distributing  points,  experience  shows 
that  the  annual  increase  of  the  herd,  if  well  cared  for, 
would  furnish  three  herds  of  200  each  year. 

There  is  much  that  is  interesting  in  regard  to  the  plan 
of  reaching  the  Yukon  gold  district  by  means  of  reindeer. 
As  has  been  said,  in  the  original  plan  for  the  purchase 
and  distribution  of  reindeer,  reference  was  mainly  had 
to  securing  a  new  food-supply  for  the  famishing  Eskimos, 
but  it  is  now  found  that  the  reindeer  are  as  essential  to 
the  white  man  as  to  the  Eskimos.  The  placer  mines  of 
the  Yukon  region  are  from  25  to  100  miles  from  the 
Yukon  River.  The  provisions  brought  from  the  south 
by  the  five  steamers  now  in  that  region  and  landed  upon 
the  banks  of  the  river  are  transported  with  great  diffi- 
culty to  the  mines.  So  great  was  the  extremity  last 
winter  that  mongrel  Indian  dogs  cost  from  j^ioo  to  <p2oo 
each  for  transportation  purposes,  and  the  freight  charges 
from  the  river  to  the  mines,  thirty  miles  distant,  ranged 
from  1 5  to  20  cents  a  pound.  The  difficulty  experienced 
in  providing  the  miners  with  the  necessaries  of  life  has 


m 

'11 

I 


-I 


.56 


BETTER  THAN    DOGS. 


I! 


demonstrated  the  necessity  of  reindeer  transportation. 
Back  from  the  rivers  in  Alaska  there  are  no  roads,  and, 
to  a  great  extent,  no  transportation  facilities  whatever. 
In  the  limited  travelling  of  the  past  dogs  have  been  used, 
but  dog-teams  are  slow,  and  must  be  burdened  with  the 
food  for  their  own  maintenance.  This  food  is  now  put 
up  in  cans  in  large  quantities  by  several  Chicago  houses, 
and  consists  of  the  refuse  meat  from  the  slaughter- 
houses, prepared  in  a  way  which  preserves  it.  Although 
this  food  is  not  so  expensive  as  other  meats,  the  cost  is 
high  when  immense  freighting  charges  must  be  paid  by 
the  miners.  On  the  other  hand,  trained  reindeer  will 
make  in  a  day  two  or  three  times  the  distance  covered 
by  a  dog-team,  and  at  the  end  can  be  turned  loose  to 
gather  their  support  from  the  moss,  which  is  always 
accessible.  They  obtain  this  by  digging  away  the  over- 
lying snow  with  their  hoofs  and  horns.  It  is  believed 
that  the  snow-covered  fields  of  Alaska  will  furnish  sup- 
port to  millions  of  these  gentle,  fleet-footed  little  animals. 
Reindeer  cannot  be  k^pt  anywhere  near  the  Alaskan 
dog,  for  the  latter  kill  them  with  the  greatest  ease. 

As  a  food-supply  nothing  better  adapted  to  the  coun- 
try can  be  imagined.  Reindeer  meat,  either  fresh  or 
cured,  is  considered  a  great  delicacy.  The  skin  is  soft 
and  warm,  and  can  be  used  for  both  clothes  and  shoes. 
Then  there  is  the  milk,  which  is  as  good  as  any  we  buy 
in  the  city  at  8  cents  a  quart.  They  are  more  docile  than 
the  horse,  and  are  better  adapted  than  any  other  animal 
for  transportation  in  the  climate  of  Alaska. 

Thus  we  have  embodied  in  one  little  animal,  aver- 


POSSIBILITIES. 


357 


aging  in  size  from  three  to  five  feet  in  heisrht.  meat, 
drink,  shoes,  clothing,  and  the  means  of  transportation 
— not  to  mention  his  possibilities  as  a  commercial  com- 
modity, for  his  hoofs  and  horns  make  the  best  glue 
known,  and  his  hair  has  a  buoyant  quality  which  makes 
it  valuable  for  ife-saving  apparatus.  In  addition  to  all 
this,  he  IS  the  only  useful  animal  that  can  live  upon 
such  frugal  fare  as  the  Alaskan  climate  affords.  Dogs 
must  carry  their  food  on  their  backs,  but  reindeer  feed 
from  the  soil  which  they  traverse ;  and  it  is  estimated 
that  the  territory  of  Alaska  is  capable  of  sustaining 
9,2oo,cxx)  of  the  latter  animals,  a  number  which  will 
support  287,000  people. 

The  only  difficulty  in  the  matter  is  the  fact  that  the 
reindeer  have  to  be  imported.  Through  Dr.  Jackson's 
efforts  something  less  than  a  thousand  have  already 
been  brought  from  Siberia,  and  because  of  the  prevail- 
ing ignorance  as  to  the  care  and  heramg  of  the  strange 
little  beasts  six  families  of  Laps  were  imported  along 
with  them.  A  central  station  was  established,  and  some 
of  the  most  intelligent  of  the  natives  taken  as  appren- 
tices. These  are  doing  well,  and  many  are  now  capable 
of  taking  charge  of  herds  themselves. 

Some  of  the  difficulties  which  Dr.  Jackson  encountered 
would  be  amusing  if  they  did  not  cause  so  much  trouble. 
He  had  to  contend  with  the  superstitions  and  the  busi- 
ness interests  of  the  natives  of  Siberia,  and  was  only 
able  to  collect  small  herds  at  different  places.  The 
Siberians  depend  largely  for  sustenance  upon  bartering 
the  products  of  the  reindeer.     They  are  afraid  that  they 


;  t 


I  >   1 


^' 


f: 


>      ' 


1^ 


358 


HERDING. 


will  be  cut  off  from  this  if  the  Alaskans  have  reindeer, 
too.  Beside  that,  the  people  never  use  money,  so  that 
It  was  necessary  for  the  agent  to  be  provided  with  the 
various  things  which  the  natives  were  glad  to  get  in 
exchange.  • 

The  richest  native  of  the  village  of  Indian  Point, 
Siberia,  does  $100,000  worth  of  business  every  year 
without  using  a  single  coin,  or  a  single  bank-note,  nor 
are  any  books  kept.  He  can  neither  read  nor  write, 
nor  can  any  of  those  belonging  to  him. 

The  reindeer,  with  their  feet  tied  together,  are  loaded 
into  small  boats  on  the  Siberian  side  and  carried  to  the 
schooners,  which  convey  them  across  to  the  Teller  Sta- 
tion at  Port  Clarence.  The  herders  drive  the  deer  which 
are  already  on  the  Alaskan  shore  down  to  the  beach, 
and  when  the  men  in  the  boats  reach  shallow  water,  the) 
turn  their  load  of  reindeer  out  into  the  water  and  let 
them  swim  to  shore  themselves — which  they  readily  do 
when  they  see  the  other  reindeer  there. 

The  herding  of  the  reindeer  imposes  a  nomadic  life 
those  who  attempt  it,  as  the  herds  constantly  change 
their  position  in  search  of  fresh  food.  During  the  first 
year  or  so  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Teller  Station  the  herd- 
ers slept  in  single  canvas  tents  during  the  entire  winter, 
and  they  suffered  great  hardships,  as  may  well  be  imag- 
ined.    Now  they  build  log  huts  v/herever  it  is  possible. 

At  the  landing  station  sledges  and  harness  are  made, 
the  latter  being  simply  made,  and  may  be  put  on  and 
secured  by  two  motions,  touching  the  deer  as  little  as 
possible. 


;er, 

hat 

the 

in 

Int, 
ear 
lor 
ite, 

led 

the 

Ita- 

ich 

ch, 

le) 

let 

do 

life 
[ge 
rst 
rd- 
er, 

'% 

de, 
nd 
as 


iBBim 


(b 


■I 


i 


s 


BKEAKING  WILD   REINDEER. 


361 


About  a  year  ago  1 30  deer  were  driven  from  the  cen- 
tral station  to  Golovin  Bay.  Mr.  N.  O.  Hultburg,  the 
missionary  there,  writes :  "At  first  the  herd  was  kept 
five  or  six  miles  north  of  the  station,  where  there  was 
moss  in  abundance.  As  we  had  a  number  of  steers  my 
thought  fell  on  how  to  get  them  trained.  I  ordered  the 
boys  to  work  with  the  deer  each  day,  but  it  proved  to 
be  too  hard  work  for  them,  as  they  are  all  very  lazy.  I 
then  ordered  the  herd  to  be  moved  further  off.  So  it 
was  moved  to  about  thirty  miles  northwest  of  the  sta- 
tion. Each  of  the  boys  then  nad  to  go  home  once  a 
week  for  his  own  provisions,  and  if  he  came  with  an  old 
deer  (one  that  had  been  trained  before)  he  had  to  go 
back  again  with  an  empty  sled.  In  this  way  we  broke 
eleven  new  deer  before  spring." 

Mr.  G.  T.  Howard,  of  the  St.  James  Episcopal  Mis- 
sion, who  accompanied  Mr.  Hultberg  and  the  others 
when  they  took  the  herd  to  Golovin  Bay,  writes  of  his 
experience  in  reindeer  driving  as  follows : 

"With  many  misgivings  I  finally  perched  myself  on 
top  of  the  loaded  sled  behind  the  deer  which  I  was  to 
drive.  At  first  there  was  no  trouble,  but  as  soon  as  I 
attempted  to  guide  the  deer  my  efforts  were  treated  with 
contempt.  No  matter  how  hard  nor  how  often  I  pulled 
on  the  line,  or  longee,  as  the  Laps  call  it,  he  paid  no 
attention  to  it,  except  by  occasionally  coming  to  a  full 
stop  and  turning  round  to  look  at  me  in  a  manner  that 
made  me  feel  rather  uncomfortable — for  the  front  hoofs 
of  the  deer  are  formidable  weapons  that  can  be  used 
with    remarkable    rapidity  —  but   he    made    no    hostile 


^J 


Hi 


I 


1. 


in 


W 


362" 


QUALITIES  OP  REINDEER. 


demonstrption,  and,  after  trying  to  stare  me  out  of 
countenance  for  a  moment  would  suddenly  wheel  around, 
and  with  a  bound  that  would  almost  land  me  on  my  head 
behind  the  sled  would  be  ofif." 

Mr.  Howard  was  finally  reduced  to  the  expedient  of 
tying  his  deer  behind  another  sledge,  after  which  matters 
went  very  smoothly.  That  method  is  often  adopted,  and 
enables  one  man  to  drive  many  sledges  of  deer  at  the 
same  time.  When  there  is  a  steep  hill  to  descend  the 
deer  is  taken  to  the  back  of  the  sledge,  to  which  he  is 
tied  by  the  longee,  braces  his  feet,  and  really  pulls  back- 
ward. The  descent  is  very  rapid,  and  as  sled  and  deer 
fly  along  they  are  almost  obscured  by  the  whirling 
snow.  ' 

A  herd  of  deer  can  be  very  easily  driven.  They  bunch 
together  like  sheep,  and  one  man  and  a  dog  can  easily 
handle  a  large  herd. 

In  appearance  they  are  almost  the  same  as  the  Amer- 
ican caribou.  Both  male  and  female  have  large  branch- 
ing horns.  They  can  stand  almost  any  degree  of  cold, 
and  have  the  domestic  instinct  to  a  remarkable  degree. 
They  are  not  able  to  carry  very  heavy  loads  on  their 
backs,  but  in  summer  often  carry  women,  children,  or 
household  effects  in  this  way.  They  can  pull  as  much  as 
300  pounds — though  a  limit  of  190  or  200  pounds  is 
generally  made — at  a  rate  of  nine  or  ten  miles  an  hour 
for  ten  hours  without  fatigue. 

M.  N.  Bruci,  who  was  in  charge  of  the  Teller  Station 
when  it  was  first  put  in  operation,  speaks  as  follows 
about  the  hide  of  the  reindeer ; 


REINDEER  SKINS. 


363 


"Tlie  color  of  the  fur  of  the  reindeer  Is  varied.  Per- 
haps the  most  common  is  the  seal-brown,  and  when  free 
from  other  shades  is  decidedly  rich  in  appearance.  The 
fur,  for  such  it  may  properly  be  called,  after  it  has  taken 
on  its  summer  coat,  is  soft  and  glossy,  and  about  the 
length  of  that  of  the  fur-seal.  When  taken  at  this  season, 
if  properly  dressed,  it  sheds  very  little.  The  skin  is  soft 
and  pliable,  and  but  little  thicker  than  that  of  the  fur-seal. 
The  reindeer  skin  was  at  one  time  the  only  one  used  by 
the  natives  for  their  clothing,  tents,  and  everything  else, 
but  now  the  seal  and  ground  squirrel  skins  play  an 
important  part.  Reindeer  skins  have  become  a  matter 
of  luxury  with  the  natives,  and  only  those  who  deny 
themselves  other  things  that  they  need  for  their  comfort 
wear  reindeer  clothing.  In  the  country  about  Kotzebue 
Sound  occasionally  a  skin  is  secured  from  a  wild  rein- 
deer, but  is  so  rare  that  it  assumes  somewhat  the  nature 
of  a  curiosity.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that,  practically,  all 
the  reindeer  skins  used  by  the  Alaskan  Eskimo  come 
from  Siberia." 

Lapland,  with  400,000  reindeer,  supplies  the  grocery 
stores  of  Northern  Europe  with  smoked  reindeer  hamni 
at  10  cents  a  pound ;  with  smoked  tongues  at  10  cents 
each  ;  with  dried  hides  at  from  f  1.25  to  {1.75  each  ;  with 
tanned  hides  at  from  $2  to  $2  each,  and  with  23,000 
carcasses  to  the  butcher-shops,  in  addition  to  what  is 
consumed  by  the  Laps  themselves.  Fresh  reindeer 
meat  is  considered  a  great  delicacy,  and  Russia  exports 
it  frozen  in  carloads  to  Germany.  The  tanned  skins  and 
hair  are  of  great  value  commercially,  and  the  best  glue 


*1 


U 


i^ 


m 


364 


A  GREAT   INDUSTRY. 


made  to-day  comes  from  reindeer  horns.  On  the  same 
basis,  Alaska  with  its  capacity  for  9,000,000  head  of 
reindeer,  could  supply  the  markets  of  America  with 
500,000  carcasses  annually,  tons  of  hams  and  tongues, 
and  the  finest  of  leather.  There  is  on  the  face  of  it  a 
chance  for  the  reindeer  forming  the  basis  of  a  great 
industry  in  the  not  far  distant  future. 


le  same 
lead  of 
ca  with 
ongues, 
i  of  it  a 
a  great 


V^ 


'I '  t 


;H' 


* 


'  i 


,\ 


(I 

(' 
f 


M 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


THE   GOLD   FINDS  OF  HISTORY. 


Gold  in  the  days  of  Abraham — Solomon's  expeditions  to  Ophir — Edomitet  as 
Ar|;onauts — Cortex  in  Mexico  and  Pizarro  in  Peru — Early  attempts  by  the 
English  to  find  gold  in  America — North  Carolina  an  ** Eldorado" — The 
Georgian  "  intrusion  " — ^The  days  of  the  Forty-niners — John  Marshall  and  his 
end — Australian  and  Klondike  nuggets  compared — The  Frazer  River  craze — The 
"Kaffer  circus" — South  African  mines  capitalized  ai  1 1,  $00,000,000— Four 
hundred  years  of  gold  digging — The  gold  kings  of  the  world. 

CENTURIES  upon  centuries  have  come  and  gone 
since  the  stories  of  fabulous  gold  finds  first  fired 
the  hearts  and  imaginations  of  men.  Our  records  proba- 
bly do  not  go  back  far  enough  to  include  the  earliest  of 
these.  ^ 

That  there  were  such  epochs  of  gold  discovery  in 
ancient  history  it  is  impossible  to  doubt,  though  trans- 
portation was  so  difiRcult  in  those  days  that  rushes  of 
gold  seekers  to  the  diggings  must  have  been  limited.  It 
is  hardly  to  be  supposed  that  the  vast  quantities  of  gold 
which  were  in  existence  in  Judea,  at  Babylon,  in  India,  in 
Persia,  and  in  Egypt  were  gradually  accumulated  by  the 
working  of  lean  sands;  the  bulk  must  have  been  the 
yield  of  discoveries  of  rich  deposits.  Gold  figures  as  an 
article  of  exchange  and  merchandise  as  far  back  as  the 
time  of  Abraham,  and  when  Solomon  came  to  the  throne 
he  fairly  plastered  the  temple  with  gold. 

Nor  could  it  have  been  rare  in  other  parts  of  Asia. 
At  Babylon,  where,  in  the  time  of  Belshazzar,  they  had 

(367) 


I  I 


I: 


I' 


I 


368 


OPHIR  THE  FIRST  EI^DORADO. 


I 


i:i|; 


gods  of  gold,  and  gold  vessels  for  every  guest  of  the 
king  to  drink  out  of;  or  in  Persia,  where  the  king  had 
beds  of  gold  and  goblets  of  gold ;  or  in  Hindostan,  where 
the  king  sat  on  a  throne  of  gold,  and  Nadir  Shah  took 
fifty  millions  of  treasure  from  the  single  city  of  Delhi. 
It  was  safe  to  infer  that  before  these  great  masses  of  gold 
were  gathered  together  there  must  have  been  startling 
discoveries  of  gold  deposits  somewhere,  causing  rushes 
of  gold  seekers  to  the  new  camps,  just  like  the  present 
rush  to  Klondike ;  and,  considering  the  undeveloped  con- 
dition of  the  mining  industry  at  that  time,  it  may  also  be 
inferred  that  the  gold  found  was  always  alluvial.  Where 
.it  was  found  we  have  no  means  of  knowing.  There  are 
no  records  of  gold  discoveries  in  the  ancient  books. 

Ophir  is  the  first  "El  Dorado"  of  which  we  have  any 
.J  record,  and  this  includes  little  but  the  bare  fact  that  it 
was  a  gold-producing  country.  There  are  no  data  by 
which  it  may  be  even  approximately  located. 

That  Solomon  received  the  tip  about  the  riches  of 
Ophir  before  the  diggings  were  worked  out  is  well 
attested  by  biblical  records.  He  was  in  the  habit  of 
receiving  gold  from  other  sources.  The  King  of  Tyre 
sent  him  120  talents,  the  equivalent  of  about  $250,000; 
and  his  friend,  the  Queen  of  Sheba,  gave  him  about 
Ji200,ooo  at  the  time  he  was  fixing  up  the  temple  at 
Jerusalem.  He  was  not  satisfied  with  this,  and  sent 
frequent  expeditions  to  Ophir.  The  ships  were  sent  out 
from  ports  on  the  Red  Sea,  and  it  is  easy  to  imagine  that 
desire  to  accompany  them  was  fully  as  strong  among  the 
Edomites  in  those  early  days  as  is  the  present-day  anxiety 


It  i 


SPANISH  GOLD.  269 

on  the  part  of  thousands  of  people  to  be  off  for  the  Klon- 
dike and  its  hidden  treasures.  Solomon  obtained  about 
$500,000  from  the  Ophir  mines. 

The  first  rush  of  grold  seekers  to  a  land  of  promise,  of 
which  we  have  authentic  historical  record,  took  place 
from  Spain  to  the  countries  discovered,  by  Columbus. 
On  the  islands  he  visited  and  those  portions  of  the  con- 
tinent on  which  he  landed  there  are  and  were  then  no 
gold  mines.  But  the  natives  he  met  wore  ornaments  of 
gold  obtained  mostly  from  South  America,  and  Cortez 
found  a  good  deal  of  it,  though  neither  he  nor  his  people 
undertook  to  mine.  When  Montezuma  surrendered  the 
treasure  in  gold  which  fell  to  the  share  of  the  conquerors 
it  amounted  to  162,000  pieces  of  eight,  equivalent,  accord- 
ing to  Mr.  Prescott,  to  $6,300,000,  a  small  sum  if  con- 
trasted with  the  yield  of  modern  mining  camps,  but  more, 
perhaps,  than  the  contents  of  the  coffers  of  any  European 
monarch  of  that  day,  and  quite  enough  to  disturb  values 
throujjhout  the  world. 

'  It  was  less  than  the  sum  secured  a  few  years  later  by 
Pizarro  in  Peru.  At  Cuzco  he  divided  among  his  men 
580,200  pieces  of  eight,  and  the  ineffectual  ransom  of 
Adahualpa  cost  the  unfortunate  Inca  a  sum  exceeding 
$15,000,000  of  our  money.  The  Spanish  army  in  Peru 
received  and  sent  home  four  times  as  much  as  the  fol- 
lowers of  Cortez  sent  from  Mexico.  It  is  diverting  to 
observe  how  the  ill-gotten  gains  operated  precisely  as 
the  discovery  of  a  bonanza  does  in  a  mining  camp.  The 
chronicler  says:  "Every  article  rose  in  value.  A  quire 
of  paper  sold  for  ten  pieces  of  eight,  a  bottle  of  wine 


I 


I 


37^^ 


EARLY  EXPECTATIONS. 


for  sixty,  a  sword  for  forty  or  fifty,  a  cloak  for  a  hundred, 
a  pair  of  shoes  for  thirty  or  forty,  and  a  horse  for  twenty- 
five  hundred."  A  piece  of  eight  was  equivalent  to  an 
ounce  of  gold. 

It  will  be  noted  that  rone  of  the  gold  obtained  by 
Pizarro  and  Cortez  and  their  followers  was  obtained 
directly  from  the  mines.  Numerous  expeditions  were 
undertaken  Huring  the  first  century  of  the  New  World's 
history  for  the  avowed  object  of  finding  the  precious 
metal,  and  yet  remarkable  as  it  may  seem,  gold  was  not 
discovered  within  the  boundaries  of  the  present  United 
States,  nor  ever  anywhere  north  of  the  Rio  Grande,  until 
300  years  after  Columbus  had  finished  his  earthly  labors. 
The  lust  for  gold  drove  hundreds  of  adventurers  across 
the  Atlantic  to  brave  the  dangers  of  the  unknown  wilds 
in  their  attempts  to  find  the  land  of  gold,  the  Eldorado 
of  which  the  Indians  had  told,  and  of  which  the  most 
romantic  tales  were  being  circulated  in  Europe.  The 
adventurers  were  of  all  the  seafaring  nations  of  the  civil- 
ized world.  The  Spaniards,  through  the  massacring  of 
the  nations  and  the  plundering  of  their  temples,  proved 
successful,  while  the  English,  on  the  other  hand,  were 
unsuccessful  throughout.  -•»  '\*k 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  expeditions  were  dismal  failures. 
He  suffered  with  his  life  for  his  ill-fortune.  The  El- 
dorado, which  had  been  sought  in  South  America,  had 
not  been  found.  The  attention  of  adventurers  was  now 
turned  to  the  opposite  direction,  and  the  imaginary  land 
of  gold  was  now  placed  in  the  north  of  America.  This 
idea  became  so  strong  that,  in  1376,  Martin  Frobisher 


SMITH'S  REPORTS. 


371 


,  i»i> 


set  out  from  England  for  the  Northwest,  seeking  a  pa5i- 
sage  to  India  north  of  Hudson's  Strait.  He  came  to  an 
island  which  he  named  Meta  Incognita,  and  on  his  return 
took  with  him  a  stone  which  the  English  refiners  declared 
to  contain  gold.  London  was  greatly  excited.  But  when 
a  second  expedition  returned  and  brought  with  it  a  lot 
of  valueless  dirt,  the  disappointment  set  the  populace 
wild  with  rage.  But  the  public  was  ready  to  be  imposed 
upon  again.  As  early  as  1605  Captain  John  Smith  heard 
from  the  Indians  reports  of  rich  gold  mines  in  Virginia. 
The  same  statements  were  repeated  by  other  explorers 
after  him,  and  soon  adventurers  flocked  to  the  new  set- 
tlements on  the  Virginia  coast.  The  second  lot  of  emi- 
grants to  Jamestown  consisted  chiefly  of  vagabond  gentle- 
men and  goldsmiths,  who,  in  spite  of  the  remonstrances 
of  Smith,  believed  they  had  discovered  grains  of  gold  in 
the  glittering  earth.  There  was  now  nothing  done  but 
digging  for  gold,  v.  ishing  gold,  refining  gold.  Newport, 
the  commander,  believed  himself  immeasurably  rich  as 
he  embarked  for  England  with  a  freight  of  worthless 
earth. 

-  Gradually  the  hope  of  ever  finding  Eldorado  vanished, 
and  for  200  years  the  golden  phantom  did  not  appear. 
Not  till  this  century  were  the  gold  treasures  of  North 
America  taken  from  the  bosom  of  the  earth.  They  were 
found  primarily,  as  the  result  of  accident,  not  of  mad, 
thoughtless  quest. 

It  was  in  the  second  year  of  this  century,  when  the 
report  spread  as  rapidly  as  was  possible  in  those  early 
days,  through  the  Eastern  States,  that  gold,  real  gold, 


(i 

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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
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CorpordSion 


23  WfST  MAIN  STRIET 

.«ISSTM,N.Y.  I4SM 

(716)«72^503 


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O^ 


372 


STORY  OF  JOHN  RE^D. 


had  been  discovered  in  North  Carolina.  At  first  people 
shook  their  heads  and  doubted  the  news.  Had  not  the 
discoverers  of  the  country  ransacked  every  nook  and 
corner  for  the  precious  metal  and  not  found  as  much  as 
an  ounce?  But  the  report  was  soon  verified,  and  before, 
long,  nuggets  of  bri^^-it  gold  reached  the  larger  towns  and 
were  seen  and  wondered  at  by  the  curious  people.  With 
the  gold  came  the  story  of  the  discovery,  and  the  wise- 
acres nodded  their  heads  and  said :  "  How  simple." 
And  when  it  became  known  that  the  owner  of  the  gold 
mine  was  one  of  those  Hessians  who  had  fought  against 
the  patriots  the  gossip-mongers  remarked,  with  a  sneer 
of  disgust :  "  The  ignorant  Dutchman."  This  is  the 
story  which  was  soon  told  all  over  the  land. 

John  Reed,  one  of  the  unfortunates  whom  the  Elector 
of  Hesse  had  pressed  into  service  to  fight  for  the  Eng- 
lish in  America,  had,  after  the  war,  settled  on  a  farm  in 
Cabarrus  County,  North  Carolina,  where  the  German 
element  predominated.  He  was  said  to  be  grossly  ignor- 
ant, having  been  but  a  poor  peasant  boy  when  forcibly 
transported  to  America.  One  sunny  summer  day,  in  the 
year  1799,  Conrad  Reed,  John's  twelve-year-old  son, 
accompanied  by  a  sister  and  a  younger  brother,  went 
to  a  small  stream,  called  Meadow  Creek,  for  the  purpose 
of  shooting  fish  with  bow  and  arrow,  as  the  Indians  were 
wont  to  do.  While  bending  over  the  water*?  brink,  Con- 
rad spied  a  yellow  substance  glistening  in  the  creek.  He 
waded  into  the  water,  picked  it  up,  and  found  it  to  be 
some  kind  of  metal.  Though  unconscious  of  its  nature 
and  value,  but  with  the  curiosity  of  a  child,  the  youngster. 


THE  JBWEI/ER'S  LUCK. 


373 


carried  his  find  home  and  showed  it  to  his  father,  who 
had  just  returned  from  cliurch.  The  parent  examined 
the  piece  of  metal,  but  was  as  ignorant  as  to  its  character 
as  the  boy.  The  next  time  he  brought  vegetables  to 
market  at  Concord,  he  took  the  yellow  stone,  which  was 
about  the  size  of  a  small  smoothing  iron,  with  him  to 
town  and  showed  it  to  William  Atkinson,  a  silversmith. 
This  worthy,  whose  experience  seems  to  have  been  sadly 
limited,  knew  not  what  to  call  it.  So  Reed,  who  unknow- 
ingly seems  to  have  suspected  the  value  of  his  son's 
find,  carried  the  piece  of  metal  home  again.  For  three 
years  it  lay  on  the  floor  of  the  farmhouse,  used  for  the 
purpose  of  keeping  the  door  from  shutting.  In  the  year 
1802  the  old  farmer  had  occasion  to  go  to  market  at 
Fayetteville.  He  took  the  piece  of  metal  with  him  and 
showed  it  to  a  jeweler.  The  latter  immediately  recog- 
nized it  as  gold,  and  asked  Reed  to  leave  it  with  him, 
saying  that  he  would  flux  it. 

The  old  farmer  did  accordingly.  On  his  next  visit  to 
town  the  jeweler  showed  him  a  large  bar  of  gold,  six  or 
eight  inches  long,  and  asked  him  at  what  price  he  would 
let  him  have  it.  Reed,  not  knowing  the  value  of  gold, 
but  still  desirous  of  profiting  as  much  as  possible  by  his 
son's  find,  named  what  he  thought  a  "  big  price,"  namely, 
$3.50.  The  jeweler  paid  him  the  price  named  and 
chuckled  over  his  bargain.  After  returning  home,  Reed 
looked  over  the  ground  where  the  gold  had  been  picked 
up  and  found  nuggets  of  the  precious  metal  all  along  the 
brink  of  the  creek.  He  associated  with  himself  three  of 
his  neighbors,  also  Germans,  Frederick  Kisor  (Kaiser), 


n 


(,!■ 


yrA  NORTH  CAROLINA  GOLD. 

James  Love  (Loew),  and  Martin  Phifer  (Pfeifer),  and  in 
the  year  1803  ^^^y  found  a  piece  of  gold  that  weighed 
twenty-eight  pounds.  Numerous  large  nuggets  of  the 
metal  were  found  thereafter,  of  various  sizes  and  values. 
The  whole  surface  of  the  ground  along  the  creek's  bank 
for  nearly  a  mile  was  rich  in  gold.  In  1831  quartz  veins 
were  discovered  which  yielded  large  quantities  of  gold. 
From  1803  to  1835,  115  pounds  of  gold  were  found  on 
one  spot.  In  1840  the  output  of  the  gold  mines  in  Car- 
rabus  County,  North  Carolina,  was  estimated  at  $3,500. 
Reed  profited  by  his  discoveries  and  died  about  the  year 
1848  a  wealthy  man. 

As  might  have  been  expected,  the  discovery  of  gold 
excited  so  much  attention  that  exploration  was  begun 
extensively.  The  gold  was  traced  southward  as  far  as 
the  borders  of  the  Cherokee  territory  in  Northern 
Georgia.  In  Rowan  County,  North  Carolina,  mining 
operations  were  commenced  at  Gold  Hill  in  September, 
1842.  Some  very  rich  veins  were  opened.  From 
January,  1843,  to  July,  1851,  gold  to  the  value  of 
$801,665  was  found  at  this  spot. 

For  awhile,  as  has  always  been  the  case  during  the 
prevalence  of  gold  fever,  gold  was  discovered  every- 
where. Reports  of  rich  finds  came  from  South  Carolina, 
Georgia,  Virginia,  Maryland,  Pennsylvania,  New  Jersey, 
New  York,  Massachusetts,  Vermont,  Lower  Canada,  and 
other  parts  of  the  continent.  In  Georgia,  especially, 
great  excitement  prevailed  for  some  time.  The  richest 
finds  were  »*eported  from  the  Cherokee  Reservation. 
Prospectors  began  to  encroach  on  the  domain  of  the  red 


?tl 


s 


O 


THK  «•  INTRUSION." 


377 


men.  Protests  naturally  followed,  and  Georgia  sent  a 
large  police  force  to  keep  back  the  invaders,  but  it  was 
of  little  avail.  Reckless,  dissipated  men  from  all  quarters 
of  the  country  flocked  in,  prowled  about  the  woods,  set 
up  log  huts  and  shanty  groceries  on  all  the  streams,  and 
even  the  Federal  troops  were  powerless  to  keep  the  law- 
less hordes  west  of  the  Chestatee.  These  days  are  known 
as  the  period  of  the  "  Intrusion  **— one  of  the  two  dates 
from  which  the  mountaineers  reckon  all  events,  the  other 
being  "  the  late  war."  Finding  that  no  projection  of  the 
Indians  by  police  measures  was  feasible,  the  State  in 
1830  adopted  the  Indians,  reservation  and  all,  and  consti- 
tuted the  region  a  county.  Then  the  mineral  lands  were 
divided  up  into  forty-acre  lots,  and  put  up  at  lottery  by 
the  State.  It  soon  came  to  be  found  here,  as  elsewhere, 
that  gold  was  not  to  be  picked  up  in  lumps  every  day. 
The  worthless,  lazy  and  dissolute  majority  of  the  early 
horde  of  invaders  gradually  drifted  away,  while  only 
the  small  minority  of.  newcomers  remained.  The  popu- 
lation, like  the  dirt,  was  slowly  panned  out,  and  the  cur- 
rent of  events  carried  the  dross  away. 

DISCOVERED   IN   GEORGIA. 

In  Habersham  County,  Georgia,  gold  was  discovered 
in  1 83 1  by  a  man  named  Wilpero,  who,  observing  the 
resemblance  of  the  surface  and  of  the  foliage  and  the 
streams  of  the  region  with  the  gold  section  of  North 
Carolina,  dug  for  the  precious  metal  and  found  it  in  con- 
siderable quantities. 

In  Virginia  gold  was  mined  for  many  years.     The 


I  )i 


;  i*l 


i 


I    r| 


m 


I 

! 
i 

1 1 

I 


378  CAWPORNIA. 

largest  masses  of  the  metal  were  found  in  or  near  rivulets 
or  runs  of  water.  On  a  brook  at  the  Whitehall  Mine 
gold  of  the  value  of  jj^  10,000  was  found  in  the  course  of  a 
few  days  in  a  space  of  about  twenty  feet  square. 

The  gold  fever  in  the  South  had  almost  died  out,  when 
from  the  farthest  quarter  of  the  United  States,  the 
recently  acquired  California,  came  the  news  of  gold  finds 
far  more  remarkable  and  productive  than  those  heretofore 
made.  Not  that  gold  was  new  to  California.  For  three 
centuries  there  had  been  wild  talk  about  fabulous  mineral 
wealth  in  the  region  of  the  Sierras.  In  the  *2o's  and  '30's 
of  this  century  small  nuggets  of  gold  had  been  repeatedly 
obtained  from  the  Indians.  One  day  a  laborer  in  the  em- 
ploy of  the  Russian-American  Company  in  California 
came  to  the  commandant  with  the  story  that  he  had  seen 
gold  up  the  bed  of  a  stream  and  advised  that  a  party  be 
sent  to  examine  it.  The  man  was  told  to  mind  his  own 
business.  Although  such  rumors  of  the  existence  of  gold 
in  California  had  occasionally  been  heard,  still  they  had 
never  been  verified  or  traced  to  any  reliable  source,  and 
they  were  regarded  as  we  now  regard  the  fabulous  stories 
of  the  golden  sands  of  Gold  Lake  or  those  of  Silver 
Planches,  which  are  said  to  exist  in  the  inaccessible 
deserts  of  Arizona. 

At  first  there  was  little  excitement,  due  doubtless  to  a 
^ack  of  definite  news.  But  when  the  gold  from  the  new 
Eldorado  began  pouring  into  Valparaiso,  Panama  and 
New  York,  in  the  latter  part  of  the  winter  of  1848-49,  an 
end  was  put  to  all  doubts,  and  in  the  spring  there  was  a 
rush  of  peaceful  emigration  such  as  the  world  had  never 


f 


RUSH  OF  •'49." 


37^ 


seen.  In  1849  25,ocx) — according  to  one  authority, 
50»ooo — immigrants  went  by  land,  and  23,000  by  sea  from 
the  regions  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  by  sea  per- 
haps 40,000  from  other  parts  of  the  world,  adding  twelve- 
fold to  the  population  and  fiftyfold  to  the  productive 
capacity  of  the  Territory. 

By  January,  1849,  ninety  vessels,  carrying  8,000  pas- 
sengers, had  sailed  from  various  ports,  bound  for  San 
Francisco,  and  seventy  more  were  advertised  to  sail. 
Pulpits  resounded  with  warnings  against  riches  as  the 
source  of  all  evil,  but  the  preachers,  when  they  could,  took 
ship  for  the  land  of  gold  like  other  people.  Early  in  1849 
the  population  of  San  Francisco  swelled  from  2,000  to 
14,000.  Four  hundred  sailing  vessels  were  abandoned 
by  their  crews  at  their  anchorage  in  the  bay.  Labor  was 
$10  a  day.  In  that  year  (1849)  549  vessels  entered  the 
Golden  Gate.  In  the  same  year  the  yield  of  the  mines 
was  probably  not  less  than  $18,000,000.  The  present 
annual  yield  is  about  $72,000,000,  and  in  the  years  since 
the  California  fields  were  opened  about  a  billion  and  a 
half  dollars  have  been  taken  out. 

Everybody  knows  that  gold  was  first  discovered  in 
California  by  James  W.  Marshall,  a  native  of  New  Jersey, 
who  built  a  mill  in  the  Sacramento  Valley  on  property 
owned  by  John  A.  Sutter.  It  was  entirely  by  accident 
that  he  discovered  the  gold,  and  became  sponsor  for  the 
wild  days  of  the  "  Forty-niners."  The  saw-mill  at  Coloma 
was  built  and  managed  by  this  Jerseyman,  and  for  four 
months  he  worked  with  a  gang  of  men  until  the  race  had 
been  dug  and  the  dam  made.     On  the  morning  of  Mon- 


ill 

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380  MARSHALL'S  FIND. 

day,  January  24,  1848,  Marshall  was  walking  in  the  tail- 
race,  when  the  rush  of  water  was  carrying  away  the  loose 
dirt  and  gravel,  and  saw  on  its  rotten  granite  bed-rock 
some  yellow  particles,  and  picked  up  several  of  them. 
The  largest  were  about  the  size  of  grains  of  wheat. 
They  were  smooth,  bright,  and  in  color  much  like  brass. 
He  thought  they  were  gold,  and  went  to  the  mill,  where 
he  told  the  men  that  he  had  found  a  gold  mine. 

At  the  time  he  was  laughed  at,  and  no  importance  at- 
tached to  his  statement.  But  Marshall  hammered  his 
new  metal,  tried  it  in  the  kitchen  fire,  and  was  the  more 
convinced  that  he  had  found  gold.  Next  morning  he 
picked  up  more  specimens  in  the  tail-race,  put  a  spoonful 
in  the  crown  of  his  slouch  hat,  and  showed  the  find  again 
at  the  mill.  Led  by  Marshall,  the  laborers  all  hastened 
down  to  the  mill-race,  and  soon  were  absorbed  in  picking 
from  the  streams  and  crevices  of  the  rock  the  precious 
yellow  metal. 

On  the  evening  of  February  2,  1848,  Marshall  rode 
into  the  fort,  his  horse  foaming  and  spattered  with  mud. 
Taking  Sutter  aside  he  showed  him  about  half  a  thim- 
bleful of  yellow  grains  of  metal.  Sutter  applied  aqua- 
fortis and  established  the  fact  that  the  metal  was  solid 
gold. 

The  first  record  of  the  discovery,  and  the  only  one  made 
on  the  day  of  its  occurrence,  was  in  the  diary  of  Henry 
W.  Bigler,  one  of  the  mill  hands.  He  wrote  January 
24th:  ''This  day  some  kind  of  metal  was  found  in  the 
tail-race  that  looks  like  goald." 

Although  Sutter  tried  to  keep  the  discovery  of  gold 


"1 

o 

g 


i    > 

«<     N 

3    5* 

??: 

o    •< 

n 


MARSHALI^'S  TROUBI.ES.  ^g^ 

a  secret  until  he  could  get  in  his  harvest,  it  was  impos- 
sible, and,  as  Parton  says:  "Sutter's  harvest  was  never 
gathered.  His  oxen,  hogs  and  sheep  were  stolen  by 
hungry  men  and  devoured.  No  hands  could  be  procured 
to  run  the  mill.  His  lands  were  squatted  on  and  dug 
over,  and  he  wasted  his  remaining  substance  in  fruitless 
litigations  to  recover  them.  To  carry  on  the  legal  war- 
fare, he  was  compelled  to  sacrifice  or  mortgage  the  parts 
of  his  estates  not  seized  by  the  gold  diggers,  until,  little 
by  little,  his  magnificent  property  melted  away,  leaving 
him  all  but  destitute.  For  crrt  item  he  paid,  in  ten  years, 
for  counsel  fees  and  legal  expenses,  $125,000."  The 
Legislature  of  California  granted  him  a  pension  of  $250 
7.  month.  In  1864  his  homestead  was  burned,  and  in 
1873  he  removed  to  Lititz,  Fa.  He  died  in  Washington, 
D.  C,  June  17,  1880,  a  poor  man. 

Marshall,  the  discoverer  of  gold,  did  not  fare  more  pros- 
perously. His  property  and  stock  were  seized,  his  land 
was  divided  into  town  lots,  and  he  became  reduced  to  ex- 
treme poverty.  His  discovery,  which  in  one  year  alone 
resulted  in  a  product  of  5(^65,000,000  and  for  seventeen 
years  brought  on  an  average  of  $25,600,000,  netted  him 
neither  fame  nor  profit. 

Marshall's  troubles  began  with  the  very  first  stampede 
of  gold-seekers.  He  cursed  Mrs.  Wimmer,  his  cook,  who 
first  spread  the  news  of  his  find,  and  he  declared  he  would 
have  the  law  protect  his  rights.  While  his  employes 
joined  in  digging  and  washing  gold,  Marshall  swore  and 
growled.  For  a  t  w  months  he  made  every  man  on  the 
scene  pay  him  a  dollar  for  his  discovery.     But  when  the 


Mr. 


^3^  DISAPPOINTMENT. 

throngs  increased  he  seldom  got  a  dollar,  and  then  only 
from  a  good-natured  man.  He  claimed  that  he  and 
Sutter  owned  the  land  on  which  the  miners  came  and  got 
their  gold.  Of  course,  there  was  justice  in  the  assertion 
that  the  miners  had  trespassed  upon  Sutter's  and  Mar- 
shall's acres,  but  the  lawless,  wild  gold  seekers  cared 
precious  little  for  legal  rights  in  those  days,  and  there  was 
neither  United  States  nor  Mexican  law  in  California  from 
some  time  in  1847  ""^^^  ^^^  summer  of  1850,  when  the 
Territory  began  to  get  ready  for  admission  as  a  State. 
Marshall  became  disliked  for  his  belligerency,  and  he  was 
in  continual  disputes  and  quarreling.  Several  times  he 
barely  escaped  serious  physical  punishment  from  a  camp 
of  reckless,  intoxicated  miners  whom  he  had  threatened 
with  legal  processes  because  of  their  encroachments  on 
his  land.  He  never  did  any  mining  himself,  for  he  claimed 
he  owned  all  the  gold  that  had  been  taken  out  at  Coloma, 
and  he  would  some  day  have  the  courts  give  him  back 
all  the  riches  that  had  been  stolen  from  him. 

He  was  a  spiritualist,  and  had  visions  and  messages 
from  the  spirit  land  that  told  him  what  to  do.  He  went 
often  to  'Frisco  and  Sacramento.  By  1851  he  became 
reconciled  to  his  fate,  and  abandoned  all  claims  to  the 
mining  property  on  his  lands.  In  1857  he  bought  a  plot 
of  land  at  Coloma,  near  the  site  of  his  saw-mill.  There 
he  planted  a  vineyard.  He  did  odd  jobs  about  the  town 
and  made  wine.  He  became  a  hard  drinker  and  every- 
one knew  him  as  a  chronic  growler.  In  1869  he  started 
out  to  lecture  on  "How  I  Found  Gold  in  California." 
He  was  very  poor,  and  for  a  few  nights  he  did  a  good 


DIED  IN  POVERTY.  ^85 

business.  Then  he  went  to  Stockton,  and  there  his  love 
for  whiskey  overcame  him,  and  he  fell  by  the  way.  In 
1872  the  Legislature  of  California  granted  him  a  pension 
of  $2cx>  a  month  for  two  years.  It  was  subsequently  re- 
newed for  sevea  years  at  J 100  a  month.  He  spent 
almost  every  dollar  of  it  in  saloons,  and  on  a  lot  of 
parasites.  That  was  why  the  first  pension  was  cut  down 
one-half.  He  died  alone  in  a  ramshackle,  desolate  cabin 
in  the  little  hamlet  of  Kelsey,  in  El  Dorado  County,  on 
August  9,  1885.  He  had  been  dead  a  day  before  his 
remains  were  found. 

These  discoveries  and  the  rush  of  population  to  Cali- 
fornia gave  rise  to  lively  times.  Lots  in  San  Francisco 
were  said  to  b(^  worth  gold  coin  enough  to  carpet  them. 
Speculation  ran  wild.  All  forms  of  gambling  were  recog- 
nized as  legitimate  business,  while  adventurers  and  crimi- 
nals flocked  in.  Society  became  chaotic,  and  at  length 
self-preservation  required  the  organization  of  the  cele- 
brated "  vigilance  committees  "  to  enforce  order. 

Gold  mining  was  neither  novel  nor  rare,  but  the  unex- 
ampled combination  of  wonderful  richness,  highly  favor- 
able geographical  conditions,  and  great  freedom  in  the 
political  institutions  of  California  led  to  such  a  rush  of 
people  and  such  an  immense  production  of  gold,  that  the 
whole  world  was  shaken,  The  older  placers  of  Brazil  and 
Siberia,  and  the  later  ones  of  Australia  and  South  Africa, 
had  a  much  smaller  influence  on  general  commerce  and 
manufactures.  The  discovery  of  these  mines  was  an 
American  achievement.  It  Wc  s  the  result  of  an  American 
conquest  from  Mexico  and  of  preparation  for  American 


1    I 


, 


in 


): 


I 


I 


^85  AUSTRAWA. 

immigrants.  They  were  Americans,  as  were  the  first 
miners,  who  subsequently  invented  the  sluice  and  the  hy- 
draulic process  of  placer  washing,  and  who  planned  and 
constructed  the  great  ditches,  flumes  and  dams  that  gave 
a  distinctive  character  to  the  placer  mining  of  California. 
Marshall's  find  did  not  limit  its  great  influences  to  our 
continent.  It  profoundly  agitated  all  the  countries  of  the 
world,  and  threw  a  belt  of  steam  around  the  globe.  It 
educated  Hargreaves,  and  taught  him  where  to  find  and 
how  to  open  up  the  gold  deposits  of  Australia.  It  built 
the  Panama  road.  It  opened  Japan  to  the  traffic  of 
Christendom.  Directly  and  indirecdy,  it  added  nearly 
four  billions  of  dollars  to  the  stock  of  the  precious  metals, 
and  by  giving  the  distinction  of  this  vast  scene  to  Eng- 
lish-speaking nations  added  much  to  their  great  industrial 
and  intellectual  influence. 

Before  three  years  elapsed  the  discoveries  in  California 
were  duplicated  in  Australia.  Some  years  before  Sir 
Roderick  Murchison  had  predicted  that  gold  would  be 
found  in  the  quartz,  and  in  185 1  Hargreaves,  who  had 
been  at  the  diggings  in  California,  looked  for  it  in  the 
Bathurst  of  New  South  Wales,  and  found  what  he  was 
looking  for.  His  discovery  was  at  first  received  with 
incredulity,  but  when  Dr.  Kerr  found  on  the  Turon  a 
lump  of  gold  worth  $21,000,  and  a  nugget  was  taken  to 
Sydney  which  sold  for  jJ6,2oo,  there  could  be  no  question 
of  the  facts. 

It  is  interesting  in  this  connection  to  know  something 
of  the  size  of  the  Klondike  nuggets,  although  large 
nuggets  are  not  necessarily  the  accompaniment  of  rich 


I 


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BlCnS  JUMP.  -gg 

fields.  There  were  four  nuggets  of  the  size  of  duck 
eggs,  and  a  dozen  as  large  as  walnuts,  in  the  gold  brought 
down  this  summer  from  Alaska.  The  big  ones  are 
worth  about  jj^375  each,  and  the  small  ones  about  $140. 
There  are  many  thousands  of  golden  bits  of  the  size  of 
watermelon  seeds  that  are  worth  $1  each,  and  hundreds 
of  the  size  of  common  gravel-stones. 

After  the  news  of  the  Australian  discoveries  had  been 
circulated  workmen  of  all  classes  deserted  their  callings 
to  hunt  for  gold,  and  they  were  so  successful  that  in  the 
fall  of  1 85 1  the  average  earnings  of  prospectors  rose  to 
1(^5  a  day.  Simultaneously,  all  articles  of  commerce  ad- 
vanced ;  wheat  quadrupled  in  value ;  potatoes  rose  from 
7  shillings  to  21  shillings  a  hundred  weight;  and  freight 
from  Sydney  to  the  mines  from  JJ12  to  j(  150  a  ton.  When 
the  news  reached  Europe  thousands  of  adventurers  em- 
barked for  Australia,  declaring  that  its  treasures  cast 
into  the  shade  those  of  California. 

Melbourne  was  jealous  of  Sydney,  and  a  generous 
reward  was  offered  for  the  discovery  of  a  gold  field  within 
the  province  of  Victoria.  The  result  was  the  discovery, 
in  August,  1 85 1,  of  the  diggings  of  Ballarat.  Ten  thou- 
sand adventurers  flocked  to  the  spot,  which  maintained  its 
reputation  as  the  greatest  gold  camp  in  the  world  till 
Mount  Alexander  and  Bendigo  Creek  were  discovered. 
Before  New  Year's  it  was  said  that  there  were  50,000 
miners  at  Bendigo,  and  Melbourne  was  depopulated. 
Flour,  which  was  worth  $100  a  ton  at  the  seaboard,  was 
in  demand  at  $1,000  a  ton  at  the  mines ;  oats  rose  eight- 
fold ;  mining  tools  sold  for  anything  the  dealers  chose  to 


.  1 


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Ml 
1 1 


.ii.riVi?A.'i;. 


390 


BIG  GOLD  MINES. 


ask.  In  that  winter  it  was  said  that  an  average  of  i5,ocx> 
adventurers  arrived  each  month  at  Melbourne,  and  car- 
penters and  masons  were  getting  $io  a  day. 

The  finder  of  one  of  the  richest  veins  was  a  man  who 
had  been  prospecting  in  the  bush  for  a  long  time  without 
success,  and  was  returning  to  Perth  disconsolate.  One 
night  on  his  way  he  encamped  in  a  wilderness,  when  his 
horse  got  restless  toward  morning  and  plunged  and 
kicked  about.  The  man  went  out  to  quiet  the  animal, 
when  he  knocked  his  foot  against  what  he  took  to  be  a 
big  stone,  but  which,  on  examination,  he  found  to  be  ft 
huge  an^  almost  solid  mass  of  pure  gold.  To  "  peg " 
out  his  claim  did  not  take  long,  and  in  a  month  six  men, 
working  with  the  roughest  tools,  took  $250,000  worth 
of  gold. 

The  "  Hannans  Broomhill "  and  the  "  Great  Boulder," 
in  the  Hannans  field  of  the  West  Australian  district,  are 
the  two  biggest  gold  mines  the  world  is  likely  to  see.  It 
is  no  question  of  stock  exchange  when  it  comes  to  digging 
out  day  by  day  ore  which  seems  to  consist  almost  entirely 
of  gold.  In  the  storehouse  of  the  Hannans  Broomhill 
there  has  been  at  one  time  between  twenty  and  thirty 
tons  of  gold. 

So  this  gold  find,  brought  about  entirely  by  accident, 
proved  to  be  no  flash  in  the  pan. 

The  yield  has  swelled  month  by  month  and  year  by 
year,  until,  in  1856,  the  export  from  Melbourne  alone, 
without  taking  Sydney  into  account,  was  over  $60,000,000. 
In  the  same  year  the  mint  at  Sydney  received  $7,500,000 


BIG  GOLD  MINES. 


>» 


M 


391 


in  gold  from  the   mines  and   New  Zealand   produced 

$IO,OCX>,OCX). 

In  Australia's  heyday,  just  as  the  yield  of  the  California 
placers  had  declined  to  such  a  degree  that  some  of  the 
most  famous  diggings  were  given  over  to  Chinamen. 
Rumors,  which  gradually  gathered  strength,  reached  San 
Francisco  that  gold  had  been  discovered  in  the  bed  of  the 
Fraser  River.  The  first  finds  were  made  in  1856;  it 
was  not  until  the  spring  of  1858  that  Fraser  River  gold 
began  to  appear  at  the  money-changers*  establishments  on 
Montgomery  Street.  An  exodus  set  in  for  Victoria,  just 
such  a  one  as  there  is  now  for  Juneau.  By  June,  1858, 
10,000  miners  were  at  work  between  Langley  and  the 
forks  of  the  river,  and  every  bar  for  140  miles  of  the 
Fraser's  course,  and  along  the  Thompson,  was  being' 
prospected.  Two  flourishing  towns,  Yale  and  Hope, 
sprang  up  on  the  river  banks,  and  before  snow  fell  20,000 
adventurers  are  said  to  have  left  California  for  the  new 
camps.  Of  these,  the  great  bulk  endured  untold  hard- 
ships, and  found  no  gold.  They  returned  to  San  Fran- 
cisco discouraged  and  penniless,  and  denounced  Fraser 
River  as  a  humbug,  just  as  some  of  the  unlucky  Yukon 
adventurers  may  possibly  be  denouncing  the  Klondike 
next  year. 

But  Fraser  River  was  a  real  find,  which  added,  in  the 
course  of  twenty-odd  years,  more  than  twice  as  much 
gold  to  the  world's  supply  as  Spain  had  obtained  from 
the  Americas  in  the  same  space  of  time.  Estimates  of 
the  yield  of  1858  vary  so  widely  that  it  is  difficult  to 
ascertain  the  truth.    Good,  the  Canadian  Minister  of 


't 


•i  4 


1,. 


-■S 


-i'i 


i 


II  m 


1 '  ki 


j^f! 


392 


CARIBOO  MOUNTAIN   COUNTRY. 


Mines,  reckoned  that  the  output  of  that  year  was  not  over 
$500,000,  but  McDonald,  figuring  from  the  reports  of 
bankers  and  express  companies,  set  it  down  at  $2,1 50,000. 
This  was  chiefly  scale  gold,  comminuted  by  hammering 
between  boulders  into  fine  flat  scales,  and  mixed  with 
considerable  flour  gold.  The  yield  increased  in  1B59  and 
again  in  i860;  for  the  three  years  the  total  output  was 
probably  something  like  $6,000,000  or  $7,000,000.  It  did 
not  convulse  trade  or  set  the  world  crazy,  as  the  discov- 
eries in  California  and  Australia  had  done,  because  the 
discouraging  reports  set  afloat  by  returning  miners  in 
1858  cooled  popular  ardor,  and  threw  a  bucP  of  cold 
water  on  the  spirits  of  the  adventurous. 

The  furore  was  rekindled  in  1861  by  fresh  discoveries 
in  the  Cariboo  Mountain  country,  at  Quesnel  Forks  dig- 
gings, and  at  the  head-waters  of  the  Fraser  and  Thompson 
rivers.  Here  the  gold  found  in  the  streams  was  coarse, 
and  the  mountains  generally  consisted  of  slates,  which, 
in  lower  latitudes,  had  been  found  to  be  auriferous.  The 
best  fields  for  mininor  were  the  beds  of  buried  rivers 
below  the  level  of  the  modern  streams,  as  in  the  Sierra 
counties  of  California.  In  the  deposit  on  the  beds  of 
these  prehistoric  rivers  were  found  richly  concentrated 
gold  leads,  which  were  reached  by  shafts  and  levels.  It 
was  from  these  that  the  chief  wealth  of  the  Cariboo  was 
extracted.  In  1861  $2,000,000  of  gold  was  shipped;  as 
Hiuch  more  in  1862  ;  an  increased  quantity  in  1863;  and 
though  after  that  year  the  excitement  subsided,  the  influx 
of  gold  seekers  ceased,  and  many  miners  abandoned  the 
country.    Mr.  Bancroft  estimates  the  total  yield  of  the 


RUSSIA  GOLD  FIELDS. 


393 


region  in  twenty  years  at  somewhere  between  $30,000,- 
000  and  $40,000,000.  It  will  average  $4,000,000  a  year 
to-day. 

But  liberal  as  the  output  of  Cariboo  was,  it  created  no 
stir  throughout  the  world,  and  from  1861  to  1881  the 
mining  population  only  averaged  about  1,500.  In  the 
beginning  it  witnessed  the  inflation  usual  in  new  mining 
camps ;  miners  got  $10  and  $12  a  day,  and  Hour  was  $1 
a  pound;  but  afterward,  though  the  actual  yield  was 
larger  than  it  had  been  in  the  early  days,  and  Antler  and 
William  Creeks  were  pouring  out  the  precious  iretal  by 
the  pound,  things  settled  down  to  a  steady,  business- 
like basis. 

Before  the  boom  of  Fraser  River  another  mining  find 

had  aroused  the  attention  of  financiers,  and  would  have 
given  rise  to  a  boom  if  it  had  occurred  anywhere  but  in 
Russia.  Russia  has  always  been  a  gold  producer.  From 
time  immemorial  the  debris  of  the  talcose  schists  on  the 
eastern  slopes  of  the  Ural,  where  they  are  intersected  by 
quartz  veins,  have  been  washed  for  gold  with  success. 
In  1830  the  gravel  of  the  rivers  in  Siberia  was  found  to 
carry  considerable  gold  in  spots.  The  government  laid 
hands  on  the  most  fruitful  diggings.  Gold  was  obtained 
from  Meningsk,  and  from  the  borders  of  the  Altai ;  from 
Nerchinsk,  on  the  Oleqma,  and  from  several  streams 
emptying  into  the  Amoor.  But  the  richest  diggings  were 
on  the  great  river  of  Siberia,  the  Yenisei,  which  is  2,500 
miles  long,  and  empties  into  the  Kara  Sea. 

Nerchinsk  has  lately  been  yielding  $2,000,000  a  year 
or  more,  and  the  Yenisei  as  much  as  $10,000,000.     No 


i 


^  •  ■ 


I         : 


I 


INif! 


i.;l 


il- 


394 


KAFFER  CIRCUS. 


excitement  marked  the  discovery.  In  Russia  popular 
movements  are  discouraged.  There  has  never  been  any 
rush  to  the  diggings.  Residents  on  the  river  are  allowed 
to  prospect  for  gold,  but  the  most  productive  spots  are 
exploited  for  the  State.  There  is  a  good  deal  of  similarity 
between  the  gold  region  of  Siberia  and  the  gold  region 
of  Alaska.  The  ground  is  water-soaked,  and  has  been 
frozen  to  a  depth  of  four  or  five  feet  from  time  imme- 
morial. During  the  brief  summer  the  fierce  heat  thaws 
out  the  surface,  but  does  not  strike  deep  enough  to  affect 
the  substratum  of  frozen  earth.  On  the  Yenisei  the 
alluvium  is  washed  for  gold  with  hot  water,  and  to  heat 
the  water  whole  forests  are  cut  down  and  used  as  fire- 
wood. It  often  happens  that  fine  flakes  of  gold  in  the 
washer  become  studded  with  needles  of  ice  and  are  car- 
ried off  in  the  stream.  It  is  evident  that  with  such  a 
process  nothing  but  coarse  gold  can  be  saved. 

The  most  sensational  feature  of  the  South  African  gold 
craze  was  and  is  the  delirious  stock  jobbing  which  it  gave 
rise  to.  This  has  been  dubbed  the  "  Kaffer  Circus,"  and 
if  circus  it  was,  Barney  Barnato,  the  suicide,  was  head 
ringmaster.  African  gold  is  no  novelty,  for  the  Portuguese 
brought  back  gold  dust  and  negro  slaves  from  Cape 
Bojador  450  years  ago.  But  in  1867,  when  a  band  of 
Australian  gold  diggers  went  out  and  set  up  a  small 
battery  for  crushing  quartz  on  the  Zambezi,  the  first 
'serio"s  attempt  at  gold  mining  was  made  since  the  days 
of  the  lost  races,  the  ruins  of  whose  great  cities  were 
discovered  by  Karl  Mauch. 

Tlie  "craze,"  however,  did  not  set  in  until  1883,  when 


1 


SHBBA  MINES. 


395 


a  Natal  trader  had  picked  up  pieces  of  quartz  along  the 
Kaap  River.  The  news  spread,  and  the  famous  pioneer 
reef  was  discovered  on  the  farm  of  Moodie,  who  sold  out 
for  a  million  dollars.  Then  the  rush  set  in  from  other 
gold  fields  which  had  not  panned  out  well,  and  the  De 
Kaap  "boom"  set  in.  Some  fifteen  Natalians  formed  a 
syndicate  to  exploit  this  country  on  their  own  account, 
but  after  four  months  of  fruitless  toil  the  money  was  all 
gone.  They  were  down  on  their  luck,  when,  as  they  re- 
turned to  camp  on  what  was  intended  to  be  their  last 
evening  there,  one,  Edwin  Bray,  savagely  dug  his  pick 
into  the  rock  as  they  walked  gloomily  along.  But  with 
one  swing  there  came  a  turn  in  the  fortunes  of  the  band, 
for  he  knocked  off  a  bit  of  quartz  so  richly  veined  with 
gold  as  to  betoken  the  existence  of  a  wonderful  **  reef." 

From  this  start  arose  the  Sheba  Mine,  which  was 
capitalized  within  a  year  for  a  million  and  a  half  sterling 
and  all  the  stock  sold.  This  wonderful  success  led  to  the 
floating  of  a  vast  number  of  hopeless  or  bogus  enter- 
prises, and  the  British  public  bit  eagerly  at  fabulous 
prices.  Yet,  surrounded  as  it  was,  by  a  host  of  fraudu- 
lent imitators,  the  great  Sheba  Mine  has  continued  as  one 
of  the  most  wonderfully  productive  mines  in  the  world. 
Millions  have  been  lost  in  swindling  and  impossible 
undertakings  in  the  De  Kaap  fields,  but  the  Sheba 
Mountain,  or  "Bray's  Golden  Hole,"  has  proved  a 
mountain  of  gold. 

It  was  one  Sunday  night  in  1886  that  the  great "  find  " 
was  made  which  laid  the  base  of  the  prosperity  of  the 
Johannesburg-to-be.    A  farm  servant  went  over  to  visit 


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^o5  THE  ROBINSON  COMPANY. 

a  friend  at  a  neighboring  farm,  and  as  he  walked  home- 
ward in  the  evening  knocked  off  a  bit  of  rock,  the  ap- 
pearance of  which  led  him  to  take  it  home  to  his  em- 
ployer. It  corresponded  with  what  the  "boss"  had 
found  in  another  part,  and  on  following  up  both  leads 
revealed  what  became  famous  as  the  Main  Reef. 

A  lot  of  the  "  conglomerate  "  was  sent  to  Kimberly  to 
be  analyzed,  and  a  thoughtful  observer  of  the  analysis 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  there  must  be  good  stufT 
where  that  came  from,  so  he  dropped  quietly  into  the 
Rand,  as  it  is  now  called.  Then  he  quietly  acquired  the 
Langlaate  farm  for  a  few  thousands,  which  the  people  on 
the  spot  thought  was  sheer  madness.  But  his  name  was 
J.  B.  Robinson,  and  he  was  soon  known  in  the  Kaffir 
circus  and  elsewhere  as  one  of  the  gold  kings  of  Africa. 
In  a  year  or  two  he  floated  a  company  with  a  capital  of 
450,000  pounds  to  acquire  what  had  cost  him  about 
20,000  pounds.  In  five  years  this  company  turned  out 
gold  to  the  value  of  a  million  pounds,  and  paid  dividends 
of  330,000  pounds.  The  Robinson  Company,  another 
formed  a  little  later,  in  five  years  produced  gold  to  the 
value  of  one  and  a  half  million  pounds  and  paid  570,000 
pounds  in  dividends.  With  these  discoveries  and  suc- 
cessful enterprises  the  name  and  fame  of  the  "  Rand  " 
were  established,  and  for  years  the  district  became  the 
happy  hunting  ground  of  financiers  and  company  pro- 
moters. 

The  Rand,  or  Witwatersrand,  is  the  topmost  plateau 
of  the  High  Veldt  of  the  Transvaal,  on  whose  summit  is 
the  gold  city  of  Johannesburg. 


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BARNEY  BARNATO.  ^  ^o^ 

In  the  later  eighties  and  early  nineties  the  principal 
feature  of  South  African  mining  was  in  the  madness  of 
the  stock  exchange ;  in  fact,  all  Europe  became  inocu- 
lated with  the  disease,  which  at  one  time  made  Johannes- 
burg a  marvel  and  a  reproach.  That  disease  was  a 
craving  for  speculation  in  the  shares  of  gold  mining 
companies,  whose  markets  were  called  the  "  Kaffir 
Circus."  The  fact  that  in  1895  South  Africa  was  pro- 
ducing two  and  a  half  million  ounces  of  gold  per  annum, 
at  a  gross  profit  of  about  three  millions  sterling,  fired  the 
imagination  and  stirred  the  cupidity  of  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands of  people  who  had  not  taken  the  trouble  to  ask 
what  it  all  meant.  When  the  British  public  did  go  in  for 
African  ventures  it  went  with  a  rush. 

The  climax  of  madness  was  reached  two  years  ago.  A 
small  handful  of  men,  a  few  years  ago,  dropped  into  the 
Rand  and  acquired  properties  for,  in  the  aggregate,  less 
than  a  couple  of  million  pounds,  which  in  the  space  of 
eight  years  reached  a  realizable  value  of  two  hundred 
million  pounds,  or  a  billion  dollars  at  the  market  quota- 
tions for  shares.  Some  of  these  men  became  worth  a 
hundred  millions  of  dollars  apiece,  of  whom  Barnato  was 
the  king  of  speculators.  It  is  a  very  curious  history, 
quite  without  parallel  in  the  records  of  human  endeavor, 
this  concentration  of  the  whole  gold-mining  industry  of 
South  Africa,  in  companies  of  half  a  dozen  cliques,  each 
of  which  has  its  "  King." 

It  is  a  contrast  to  the  experience  of  Australia  and 
California,  where  combined  effort  in  the  way  of  company 
working  only  came  into  operation  when  individual  diggers 


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ENORMOUS  INFI^ATION. 


had  creamed  all  the  nuggets  and  surface  gold  and  fallen 
upon  evil  times.  In  1895,  the  ^op  wave  of  the  craze,  the 
inflation  was  so  great  that  the  capitalized  value  of  all  the 
South  African  companies,  was  300,000,000  pounds. 

There  was  a  great  set-back  shordy  after,  but  the  infla- 
tion is  still  enormous,  for  most  of  the  companies  have  not 
yet  paid  any  dividends  at  all,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  the 
legitimate  profits  of  all  of  them  together  this  year  exceed 
two  and  a  half  millions  sterling.  The  latest  estimate  of 
the  gold  resources  of  the  Witwatersrand  is  that  if  mining 
can  be  carried  on  to  a  depth  of  5000  feet  something  like 
700,000,000  pounds  of  gold  should  be  obtained  within  the 
next  fifty  years  at  a  cost  of  500,000,000  pounds.  This 
would  leave  a  clear  profit  of  200,000,000  pounds  in  fifty 
years,  on  a  capital  of  150,000,000  pounds.  This  is  little 
more  than  2  J^  per  cent.,  even  supposing  all  the  expecta- 
tions of  deep-level  mining  are  realized,  although  there  is 
no  experience  to  guide.  The  South  African  game  does 
not  look  to  be  worth  the  candle  unless  you  are  snugly 
tucked  away  on  the  inside. 

All  the  gold  mined  in  the  world  from  the  date  of  the 
discovery  of  America  to  the  close  of  the  fiscal  year  of 
1895  is  placed  by  the  statisticians  of  the  various  govern- 
ments at  $8,781,858,700. 

It  is  interesting  to  know  that  nearly  half  of  this  total  for 
over  four  hundred  years  has  been  taken  out  of  three 
countries  in  less  than  fifty  years.  Since  the  days  of  '49 
California  and  the  contiguous  gold  fields  have  given  up 
$2,035,416,000.  Gold  was  discovered  in  Australia  in 
1 85 1,  in  New  South  Wales,  New  Zealand,  Queensland, 


MONEY  MILLER. 


401 


Tasmania,  Victoria,  and  Western  Australia,  and  the  total 
output  to  date  is  $1,655,71 3,cxx). 

Gold  in  the  South  African  Republic  has  only  been  of 
importance  since  1 890,  and  the  total  at  the  end  of  the  first 
six  months  of  1 896  was  a  little  less  than  $2 1 2,000,000. 

The  precious  metal  is  to-day  being  yielded  at  an  annual 
rate  of  $36,000,000  in  the  United  States,  $35,500,000  in 
Australia,  and  $30,000,000  in  South  Africa.  But  little  is 
ever  heard  of  the  enormous  fortunes  that  must  have  been 
made  in  Australia.  This  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the  prin- 
cipal mines  are  operated  by  syndicates  of  English  capi- 
talists. 

The  name  that  is  pre-eminent  in  the  history  of  Aus- 
tralian gold  fields  is  that  of  "  Money  "  Miller,  who  is  said 
to  have  retired  with  a  fortune  of  $25,000,000,  not  large 
enough  to  make  him  conspicuous  should  he  live  in 
California. 

The  wealth  of  the  South  African  Republic  has  been 
divided  among  fewer  men.  Barney  Barnato  is  said  to 
have  been  worth  $200,000,000.  Alfred  Beit  is  the  reputed 
owner  of  $  1 00,000,000 ;  Cecil  Rhodes  of  $50,000,000 ;  and 
the  greatest  of  all  is  S.  B.  Robinson,  who  is  supposed  to 
command  $250,000,000. 

The  list  of  Americans  who  have  become  many  times 
millionaires  through  gold  mines  is  a  long  one.  Fully  one- 
half  of  the  millions  taken  out  of  the  mountains  of 
the  Pacific  is  divided  among  less  than  twenty  men.  The 
names  of  the  more  famous  are  part  of  the  financial  history 
of  the  world,  and  include : 

Leiand  Stanford $35,000,000 


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402 


MONEY  KINGS. 

James  G.   Fair ,  35,000,000 

Charles  Crocker  Estate 22,000,000 

Peter  Donahue 20,000,000 

J.  B.  Haggin. 20,000,000 

Claus  Spreckles ; 30,000,000 

John  W.  Mackay 10,000,000 

James  G.  Flood 10,000,000 

Williams.  O'Brien 10,000,000 

Sharon  Estate 20,000,000 

Mark   Hopkins «....  21,000,000 

Lick  Estate 10,000,000 

C.  P.  Huntington 35,000,000 

Charles  McLaughlin  5,000,000 

Alex.  Montgomery 5,000,000 

Dave  T.  Murphy 5,000,000 

Adolphus  C.  Whitcomb 5,000,000 

Thomas  Blythe...^ 5,000,000 

J.  C.  Wilmerding. 5,000,000 

Walter  S.  Hobart 5,000,000 

Robert  C.  Johnston 5,000,000 


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■•■!T --  i'«<5SS:**^» 


CHAPTER  XIX.       ":;   V 

•-■■■■ 
•^       :  BONANZA  KINGS. 

Some  of  the  famous  princes  of  the  gold-mining  world — From  poverty  to  sudden 
riches — The  miners'  cabins  changed  for  great  palaces  and  luxurious  liring — 
Great  fortunes  easily  acquired  and  rapidly  thrown  away — Nuggets  of  pure  gold 
picked  up  by  chance — The  best-known  cases  of  finding  lumps  of  the  pure  yel- 
low treasure. 

THE  gold  fields  of  Alaska  are  still  too  young  in  the 
knowledge  of  man  to  have  produced  many  of  those 
interesting  types  of  humanity  which  we  call  "  bonanza 
kings,"  but  to  the  name  of  Tread  well,  the  owner  of  the 
famous  mine,  and  some  others  who  have  passed  from 
poverty  to  riches  in  a  brief  space  of  time,  will  probably 
be  added  a  long  list  of  equally  fortunate  men.  Some  of 
those  who  came  down  from  the  Klondike  country  on  the 
"  Portland "  and  other  vessels  during  the  past  summer, 
bringing  with  them  bags  of  yellow  dust,  have  already 
taken  long  strides  toward  the  enviable  position  of  min- 
ing princes,  and  when  they  return  again  will  probably  be 
able  to  spread  before  the  world  still  further  evidences  of 
their  claim  to  the  title. 

One  of  the  pioneers  of  th  ,  Alaska  country  who  is 
likely  to  be  heard  of  before  long  as  the  possessor  of  a 
great  fortune  which  came  to  him  suddenly  after  years  of 
wandering  and  search  is  Captain  John  Healy,  known  to 
northern  territory  as  "  King  of  the  Klondike." 

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CAPTAIN  JOHN  HEALY. 


The  title  is  given  by  those  who  have  lately  been  in 
Alaska  grubbing  for  gold  to  a  genial,  jovial^  old  hunter 
and  prospector  who  went  into  that  frozen  country  before 
many  of  those  who  have  since  grown  rich  there  had  ever 
more  than  heard  of  it.  Had  it  not  been  for  John  Healy, 
indeed,  it  is  doubtful  if  the  world  would  yet  know  of  the 
riches  of  the  Klondike.  Because,  after  he  had  wandered 
over  the  Alaskan  hills  and  learned  what  the  country 
contained,  he  came  back  to  civilization  in  the  interest  of 
opening  up  the  region  to  prospectors  and  hunters,  while 
others  who  were  there  were  doing  their  best  to  keep  it 
closed. 

But  aside  from  being  the  so-called  King  of  the  Klon- 
dike, John  Healy  has  an  interesting  history.  At  the 
start  he  was  a  boy  in  New  York.  Then  he  ran  away 
from  home  to  join  the  Walker  filibusters  on  the  Pacific 
Coast.  Later  he  became  a  hunter,  trapper,  prospector, 
guide,  and  scout  on  the  Western  plains,  and  a  Montana 
sheriff.  Twelve  years  ago  he  went  to  Alaska,  and  has 
been  the  means  of  organizing  the  largest  transportation 
company  that  now  operates  in  the  country.  Dyea,  which 
is  now  one  of  the  principal  points  on  the  mountain  route 
to  the  Klondike  diggings,  was  once  Healy's  Store.  The 
so-called  king  of  to-day  established  his  trading  post 
there  years  and  years  ago.  He  is  a  pioneer  of  the 
pioneers. 

Incidentally,  while  a  scout  on  the  Western  plains, 
Healy  did  a  little  work  for  the  government,  and  at  one 
time  offered  to  bring  in  the  ferocious  old  Indian  warrior. 


KING  OF  THE  KLONDIKE. 


407 


"Sitting  Bull,"  either  dead  or  alive,  for  the  sum  of  $50,000. 
All  his  life  Healy  has  been  a  rover,  an  active,  ardent,  and 
courageous  explorer  of  new  countries.  Civilization  has 
no  charms  for  him.  He  is  a  lover  of  the  wildest  nature, 
of  the  camp-fire,  the  mountain  pass,  and  the  trials  and 
joys  of  the  hunter.  For  forty-five  years  he  has  lived  in 
the  mountains  and  on  the  plains  digging  for  gold  or 
trading  in  furs.  To  his  love  of  adventure  and  to  his 
genius  for  exploration  the  men  who  are  now  growing 
rich  in  the  Alaskan  gold  fields  may  be  largely  thankful, 
and  his  reward  will  no  doubt  come  to  him  in  other  prac- 
tical ways,  even  if  his  mines  do  not  show  the  riches  they 
promise. 

Since  the  Klondike  excitement  began  a  great  deal  of 
mention  has  been  made  in  the  papers  of  Captain  Healy 
— he  has  the  title  captain  as  well  as  that  of  king. 

Healy's  life  has  been  an  adventure  from  the  start.  He 
has  always  had  a  liking  for  the  plains  and  he  had  a 
taste  of  frontier  life  and  war  early  in  his  existence.  The 
first  was  when  he  ran  away  from  his  home  to  join  the 
filibustering  forces  of  the  venturesome  and  daring 
Walker.  Walker,  as  those  who  are  acquainted  with  the 
history  of  the  middle  of  this  century  will  remember,  had 
in  hand  a  project  for  the  conquest  of  northern  Mexico, 
with  the  idea  of  making  himself  its  ruler.  He  was  born 
in  Nashville,  Tenn.,  had  studied  medicine  in  Europe  and 
law  in  this  country,  and  practiced  both.  In  1850  he  went 
to  California  as  a  lawyer  and  an  editor,  and  three  years 
later  organized  his  expedition  to  take  northern  Mexico, 


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THE  PACIFIC  REPUBLIC. 


where  it  was  announced  he  intended  to  establish  the 
Pacific  republic. 

This  daring  enterprise  appealed  at  once  to  young 
Healy,  and  he  cut  away  from  home  to  join  the  expedi- 
tion. The  party  eluded  the  vigilance  of  the  United 
States  authorities,  and  sailed  from  San  Francisco,  land- 
ing soon  after  in  Lower  California  with  one  hundred  and 
seventy  men.  Walker  at  once  proclaimed  himself  Presi- 
dent of  the  new  republic,  but  the  party  was  soon  assailed 
by  a  large  force  of  Mexicans,  and  driven  across  the 
border  to  surrender  to  the  United  States  troops.  If  he 
had  been  successful  Healy  would  probably  have  been 
one  of  his  chief  lieutenants  in  the  government. 

Healy  did  not  join  Walker  in  his  expeditions  after  the 
failure  of  the  Pacific  republic.  He  was  in  that  enter- 
prise only  for  the  daring  and  excitement  of  the  thing, 
and  after  it  was  over  he  went  to  the  plains.  It  was  there 
that  he  found  the  surroundings  that  best  suited  him,  and 
the  life  he  preferred  above  all  others.  For  years  he  in- 
habited the  camps  of  the  Indians,  followed  the  trail  of  the 
buffalo,  and  traded  in  skins  and  furs.  Other  years  he 
spent  in  prospecting  in  the  rich  hills  of  the  Rockies, 
making  a  good  strike  once  in  a  while,  cleaning  up  a 
good  bit  of  money,  but  always  pushing  on  to  something 
new. 

At  the  time  of  the  Mormon  war,  of  course,  he  made 
for  Salt  Lake  City,  and  was  happy  in  the  activity  and 
dangers  of  the  times.  Later  he  became  sheriff  of  one  of 
the  counties  of  Montana,  which  speaks  well  for  his  cour- 


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Presi- 
sailed 
s  the 
If  he 
been 


ti 


11 


2r  the 
mter- 
thing, 
there 
1,  and 
he  in- 
Df  the 
irs  he 
ckies, 
up  a 
thing 

made 
/  and 
ne  of 
cour- 


'  i 


!? 


a 

V. 


U. 

oj 


7. 

O 


age.  N 
tana  in 
medicin 

It  wa 
plains  t 
warm  li 
ferociou 
for  anyl 

It  can 
with  an^ 
excitem 
years  a| 
were  sh 
to  engai 
made  u 
then  to 
of  expe 
that  the 
a  good 
Portus 
the  fur  1 
influenc 
Trading 
panics 
compan 
manage 
Soon 
fort  at  1 
the  Ind 


OLD  SITTING  BULL. 


411 


age.  No  tenderfoot  could  hold  his  job  as  sheriff  in  Mon- 
tana in  these  bad  times.  The  cowboys  were  full  of  bad 
medicine. 

It  was  during  his  days  as  a  scout  and  a  guide  on  the 
plains  that  he  fell  in  with  old  Sitting  Bull.  There  was  a 
warm  liking  between  Healy  and  the  Indian  c'lief,  if  that 
ferocious  old  red  man  can  be  said  to  have  had  any  liking 
for  anybody. 

It  cannot  be  said  that  Captain  Healy  went  to  Alaska 
with  any  idea  that  there  would  ever  be  any  such  gold 
excitement  there  as  has  recently  developed.  Twelve 
years  ago  no  one  suspected  that  the  river  beds  up  there 
were  rhining  with  the  yellow  metal.  Healy  went  there 
to  engage  in  the  fur  trade.  That  and  salmon  fishing 
made  up  the  list  of  everything  Alaska  was  supposed 
then  to  be  good  for.  Being  a  prospector  and  a  miner 
of  experience,  though,  it  did  not  take  him  long  to  learn 
that  there  was  gold  in  Alaska,  and  he  located  and  mined 
a  good  bit  of  it.  In  1892  he  went* to  Chicago  to  meet 
Portus  B.  Weare,  with  whom  he  had  been  engaged  in 
the  fur  tradfe  in  the  early  days  of  the  Northwest.  He 
influenced  Mr.  Weare  to  start  the  North  American 
Trading  Company,  now  one  of  the  largest  of  the  com- 
panies doing  business  in  the  new  country.  Of  this 
company  Healy  is  now  vice-president  and  general 
manager. 

Soon  after  going  to  Alaska  Captain  Healy  built  his 
fort  at  Dyea,  near  the  Chilkoot  Pass.  He  learned  from 
the  Indians  that  there  was  gold  along  the  Y-^kon,  and 


.  i 


' 


M 


;«: 


.  .51: 


'4 


ii  ill 


11 


412 


HEALY'S  FORT. 


went  there,  prospecting  along  Forty-Mile,  Sixty-Mile, 
Stewart,  and  other  rivers.  His  wanderings  there  gave 
him  information  that  resulted  in  his  returning  to  the 
States  and  subsequently  to  the  organization  of  the 
gigantic  company. 

Personally  Captain  Healy,  the  "King  of  the  Klon- 
dike," is  a  genial,  whole-souled  sort  of  a  man,  compan- 
ionable and  agreeable  in  all  ways.  His  manners  are 
quiet  and  gentle,  and,  though  he  likens  to  talk  of  his 
doings  on  the  plains,  he  never  does  so  in  a  boasting 
way.  In  stature  he  is  a  little  above  the  average.  He  is 
about  five  feet  nine  inches  tall,  weighs  about  one  hun- 
dred and  eighty  pounds,  and  has  a  pair  of  broad  shoul- 
ders and  a  deep,  sound  chest.  His  face  is  expressive 
of  courage,  and  that  and  his  love  of  adventure  are  his 
chief  characteristics. 

The  history  of  the  "  bonanza  kings  "  who  have  become 
famous  in  all  lands  furnishes  one  of  the  most  romantic 
and  fascinating  chapters  in  the  history  of  the  world. 
The  rise  and  fall  of  Barney  Barnato  and  the  final 
tragedy  of  his  life  are  still  too  fresh  in  the  minds  of  the 
reader  to  need  recounting  here,  though  he.  was  probably 
the  greatest  of  all  the  money  princes  of  his  class.  His 
sudden  acquisition  of  great  wealth  and  the  way  he  threw 
it  to  the  winds  in  luxurious  living  and  lavish  hospitality 
and  pomp  has  probably  never  been  equalled.  Some 
other  instances  of  great  luck  in  the  gold  fields  are  worth 
recounting. 

The  most  famous  case  of  prodigal  waste  of  a  large 


»l' 


•I 

-S 


LEMUEL  BOWERS. 


413 


fortune  in  he  Western  mining  region  is  that  of  Lemuel 
Bowers,  i^etter  known  as  Sandy  Bowers,  of  Gold  Hill, 
near  Carson  City,  Nevada.  Probably  there  never  was 
a  more  extravagant  use  of  wealth  than  that  of  Sandy 
Bowers — "Coal  Oil  Johnny"  not  excepted.  The  late 
Senator  James  G.  Fair  said  that  he  had  never  known  of 
a  great  fortune  so  easily  acquired  and  thrown  away  as 
that  of  Sandy  Bowers.  Bowers  was  a  raw-boned,  red- 
headed, ignorant  Irish  lad.  He  could  read  and  write  a 
little,  and  was  the  personification  of  good  nature.  When 
the  bonanza  ledge  of  the  Comstock  lode  was  found  by 
Mackay,  Fair,  Flood,  and  O'Brien,  in  1869,  Bowers  was 
a  day  laborer  in  Carson  City.  It  was  found  that  ten 
feet  of  Bowers's  place,  out  on  the  hills,  covered  the 
silver  lode,  and  that  the  little  farm  of  a  poor  widow, 
Mrs.  Bridget  McCowan,  covered  hundreds  of  square 
fee*,  of  the  silver  bed  beneath.  Sandy  and  the  widow 
had  known  each  other  in  poverty  for  years,  and  when  the 
dawn  of  prosperity  came  into  their  lives,  they  pooled 
their  issues  by  marriage.  The  mines  located  on  their 
combined  farms  were  the  famous  Crown  Point  Ravine 
and  the  Bowers.  In  the  summer  of  1871  the  Bowers 
couple  had  an  income  of  $2,300  a  day.  For  a  year  and 
a  half  they  got  checks  semi-monthly  for  about  $18,000, 
often  $2 ',000.  They  received  offers  several  times  of 
about  $1,000,000  for  the  Crown  Point  Ravine  and  the 
Bov/ers. 

It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  Sandy  and  his  bride  were 
about  wild  with  joy  ov^r  the  flood  of  money  that  came  in 


IjI 


111 


.;■  ' 


414 


SANDY  AND  HIS  BRIDE. 


upon  them.  Some  people  say  they  believed  they  had  a 
veritable  Aladdin's  lamp,  but  others  say  they  never  heard 
of  any  such  lamp,  and  were  simply  crazy  from  their 
extraordinary  income.  The  Central  and  Union  Pacific 
Railroads  had  been  opened  two  years  at  that  time.  Rail- 
road fares  in  the  West  were  high,  and  special  cars  cost 
small  fortunes.  Nevertheless,  Sandy  and  Mrs.  Bowers 
chartered  a  special  train  to  take  them  and  a  score  of 
friends  to  Chicago  and  New  York.  The  Bowerses 
stocked  the  cars  with  all  manner  of  fancy  provisions.  In 
Chicago,  and  later  in  New  York,  they  took  their  guests 
to  the  best  hotels  and  treated  them  lavishly.  Then,  Ip 
two  weeks,  the  party  returned  to  Carson  City  and  '  ;• 
ginia  City. 

Sandy  Bowers  and  his  wife  had  seen  the  mansions  of 
Chicago  and  New  York,  and  they  determined  that,  to 
occupy  the  places  of  millionaires,  they  must  have  a  royal 
home  instead  of  the  red-wood,  three-roomed  house  they 
had  delighted  in.  An  architect  was  summoned  from 
San  Francisco  and  set  to  work. 

**  What  we  want  is  a  bang-up  mansion  like  what  them 
other  rich  *uns  have,  and  we  want  it  quick,  too.**  This 
was  Sandy's  order. 

There  was  no  talk  about  the  cost  of  the  house.  A 
man  who,  two  years  before,  occasionally  earned  $1.50  a 
day,  and  was  then  getting  over  $2,000  every  day  in  the 
week  from  an  apparently  inexhaustible  supply  of  rock 
under  his  farm,  could  not  bother  about  a  few  extra  thou- 
sand dollars  in  his  home.    The  site  chosen  for  the  man- 


BIMM0HH 


CROWN  POINT  MINE. 


415 


ffi; 


^ 
^ 


sion  was  in  Washoe  Valley,  six  miles  from  Gold  Hill,  in 
a  desolate  region,  which  Sandy  thought  looked  like  val- 
leys he  had  seen  on  the  Hudson  River.  In  speaking  of 
the  howling  wilderness  where  the  Bowers's  mansion 
was  erected,  Mark  Twain  once  wrote  that  "the  first 
landscape  gardener  sent  there  by  Sandy  Bowers  was 
slain  by  the  Indians." 

The  Crown  Point  Mine  continued  to  pour  out  its 
riches,  and  in  1873  the  Bowers's  granite  mansion  was 
finished.  The  army  of  builders,  decorators,  landscape 
gardeners,  and  furnishers,  all  brought  from  San  Fran- 
cisco, Chicago,  and  New  York  by  Sandy's  young  busi- 
ness manager,  had  full  swing,  and  had  followed  the 
'miner's  orders  to  "do  the  job  in  grand  style."  The 
house  would  be  stately  even  now  on  Fifth  Avenue  or  on 
Nob  Hill.  It  was  built  of  granite,  and  up  to  the  day  it 
was  turned  over  to  its  owners  it  had  cost  upward  of 
ji46o,ooo.  Several  men  and  women  had  traveled  in 
Europe  purposely  for  decorations  for  the  mansion  in  the 
sage-brush,  desolate  valley  of  Washoe.  There  were 
twenty-four  rooms  in  the  house.  A  cologne  fountain 
spouted  in  the  marble  front  hall ;  an  immense  buffet 
of  teak-wood,  carved  in  India  expressly  for  the  mansion, 
stooa  in  the  big  dining-room ;  several  thousand  books, 
bound  in  the  costliest  covers,  and  chosen  by  a  man  in 
Chicago,  stood  on  the  mahogany  shelves  in  the  library, 
and  a  marble  bath-tub  was  one  of  the  luxuiies  of  the 
upper  rooms.  Sandy's  friends  said  he  paid  bills  to  the 
amount  of  $25,000  for  oil  paintings  alone  that  were  sent 


S: 

f  litl 


{ i  ■ 


a' 


4i6 


MILLIONAIRES  BANQUET. 


him  from  New  York  and  abroad.  An  idea  of  the  ex- 
travagance of  the  mansion  may  be  had  from  the  fact 
that  the  door-knobs  were  molded  in  solid  silver  from 
unique  designs,  while  the  stair-rods  were  of  solid  silver, 
tipped  with  solid  gold.  Such  table  vessels  as  soup- 
tureens  and  potato-dishes  were  of  solid  gold,  and  there 
were  dinner  and  tea  sets  in  solid  silver  throughout. 

Sandy  and  his  wife  moved  from  their  j^i.ooo  house 
into  this  mansion.  Meanwhile  the  curse  of  a  great  many 
suddenly  made  millionaires  in  the  West — a  taste  for  in- 
toxicants— had  I  'old  on  Sandy.  He  entertained 
lavishly.  A  Four^.  of  July  celebration  and  banquet 
to  the  bonanza  mining  millionaires,  in  1873,  was  the  most 
elaborate  affair  known  even  in  those  days  of  prodigality. 
It  is  said  to  have  cost  $1 1,000  for  the  day's  hospitality  to 
forty  gentlemen.  Sandy  became  more  reckless  as  his 
taste  for  liquor  grew.  When  his  silver  ledges  began  to 
"  pinch  out,"  disasters  came  upon  him  thick  and  fast.  In 
1875  his  income  had  decreased  to  a  few  hundred  dollars 
a  month.  He  was  living  at  the  rate  of  a  thousand  or 
two  a  week.  He  mortgaged  his  property,  sold  his  library 
and  art  treasures  piece  by  piece.  Then  he  parted  with 
his  costly  furniture  for  a  song.  The  Crown  Point  Ravine 
petered  out  entirely  in  1876,  and  Bowers  and  his  wife 
lived  in  a  single  room  of  their  big  house.  Everything 
that  could  be  converted  into  ready  cash  was  sold  at  any 
price.  Sandy  died  in  1877.  ^^  "^^^  buried  by  contri- 
butions from  people  who  had  enjoyed  his  bounty  when 
he  was  rich,    Mrs.  Bowers  is  still  alive.    She  goes  about 


^^ 


\i 


MONTANA  BAR. 


417 


California  and  Nevada  telling  fortunes  from  cards,  at 
twenty-five  and  fifty  cents  a  head.  She  is  very  poor  and 
feeble.  She  recently  told  a  reporter  in  Los  Angeles  that 
her  only  hope  is  to  get  enough  money  together  to  be 
buried  at  the  side  of  her  husband  in  Carson  City. 

The  Bowers  mansion  is  in  ruins  now.  It  was  proposed 
that  James  J.  Corbett  might  use  it  as  a  home  and  train- 
ing place  in  his  preparations  for  the  recent  fight  with 
Fitzsimmons  at  Carson  City,  but  the  building  was  found 
too  dilapidated  even  for  temporary  occupancy. 

Accident  pure  and  simple  led  to  the  discovery  of 
Montana  Bar,  the  richest  half-acre  of  gold  ground  in 
the  world.  In  the  spring  of  1864  four  prospectors — 
McGregor,  Fredericks,  Sullivan,  and  Wright — were 
straggling  through  a  gulch  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mis- 
souri River,  a  few  miles  from  the  site  of  the  present  city 
of  Helena.  Pausing  for  rest,  one  of  the  parties  scooped 
up  and  began  to  wash  a  panful  of  dirt.  Their  pickings 
up  to  that  time  had  been  very  dry,  and  the  miner's  sur- 
prise may  be  imagined  when,  from  a  single  shovelful  of 
dirt  he  washed  about  forty  dollars  in  coarse  dust.  Ex- 
citedly announcing  his  discovery  to  his  companions,  they 
set  to  work  with  a  will,  and  by  nightfall  had  a  pile  of  dust 
and  nuggets  worth  $21,000.  Early  in  the  morning  of 
the  second  day  they  located  all  the  ground  the  law 
allowed  by  driving  stakes,  with  the  usual  posted  notices, 
and  then  resumed  digging  and  washing.  The  locality 
was  an  isolated  one,  and  they  guarded  their  find  with 
such  care  that  no  hint  of  it  reached  the  outside  world. 


■  !| 


;  n 


i    i 


h 


m 


4i8 


HIDING  THEIR  GOLD. 


When  the  coming  on  of  winter  made  further  operations 
impossible,  they  had  taken  from  half  an  acre  of  ground 
three  and  a  half  tons  of  coarse  gold,  worth  not  less  than 
a  million  dollars.  The  gold  had  been  hidden  as  rapidly 
as  taken  out  under  the  log  cabin  they  had  thrown  up 
as  a  habitation.  How  to  get  safely  away  with  their 
treasure  was  the  problem  which  now  confronted  them. 
A  covered  freight  wagon,  a  four-horse  team,  and  a  num- 
ber of  empty  nail  kegs  were  bought  at  the  nearest  set- 
tlement and  taken  to  the  claim,  where,  at  the  end  of  a 
week,  the  dust  was  packed  in  the  kegs  and  the  latter 
securely  bound  with  thongs  of  rawhide.  Then  the  kegs 
were  loaded  into  the  wagon,  and  by  easy  stages  conveyed 
a  distance  of  120  miles  to  Fort  Benton,  the  head  of 
navigation  on  the  Missouri.  Then,  after  much  delib- 
eration, it  was  decided  to  build  a  flat-boat  that  would  go 
over  the  shallow  places,  and  with  it  float  down  the  river 
to  St.  Joseph,  which  plan,  after  several  startling  expe- 
riences, was  successfully  carried  out.  Following  the 
departure  of  McGregor  and  his  comrades  a  stampede 
to  the  gulch  set  in,  and  many  good  finds  were  made.  In 
one  instance  a  miner  who  had  staked  off  a  claim  and 
found  good  prospects  was  bantered  by  a  bystander  who 
owned  a  couple  of  pack  horses  for  a  trade.  This  was 
quickly  agreed  to,  and  in  a  few  weeks  the  new  owner 
took  out  dust  to  the  value  of  $56,000.  Another  valu- 
able claim  was  bought  with  a  Colt's  revolver.  The  to|tal 
yield  of  the  gulch  exceeded  three  million  dollars. 

Chance  also  led  to  the  discovery  of  the  famous  Com- 


IN 


{■    ■ 

-  .  1 

:  •' 

-i       r 


jCLONpiK^  UoLD  ^IiNiNG,  Showing  3luice, 


n 


\    i 


II 


COMSTOCK  LODE. 


421 


Stock  lode  in  Nevada.  The  site  of  the  lode,  so  the  story 
runs,  was  prospected  by  a  miner  named  Comstock,  who 
thought  so  little  of  the  claim  which  he  had  located  that 
he  soon  abandoned  it.  Then  an  eccentric  character, 
Finney  by  name,  while  hunting  in  the  neighborhood,  shot 
a  deer,  which  struggled  off  as  fast  as  it  could,  with  Fin- 
ney in  hot  pursuit.  The  hunter,  in  scrambling  up  the 
side  of  a  hill,  dislodged  some  loose  stones,  and,  as  he 
passed,  thought  he  perceived  signs  of  "  color.'*  At  the 
moment,  however,  the  wounded  deer  claimed  his  atten- 
tion, and,  though  upon  his  return  to  camp  he  related  the 
incident,  he  does  not  seem  to  have  attached  much  im- 
portance to  it,  for  he  made  no  effort  to  return  and  locate 
a  claim.  But  Peter  O'Reilly  and  Patrick  McLaughlin, 
overhearing  his  story,  resolved  to  examine  the  locality, 
and  a  few  days  later  began  operations  on  the  site  of  the 
present  Comstock  mines.  At  first  their  search  seemed 
a  futile  one,  but  they  persevered,  and  being  finally 
attracted  by  some  curious-looking  black  earth,  they 
washed  a  little  of  it  in  a  pan.  To  their  surprise,  from 
the  small  quantity  of  earth  tested  came  ten  or  fifteen 
dollars*  worth  of  gold.  This  served  to  raise  their  drooping 
hopes  and  they  were  making  splendid  progress  when 
Comstock  appeared  and  demanded  to  know  what  they 
were  doing  on  his  claim.  Compelled  either  to  kill  the 
claimant  or  to  take  him  into  partnership,  O'Reilly  and 
McLaughlin  chose  the  lesser  of  the  two  evils.  But  no 
sooner  was  Comstock  pacified  than  along  came  Finney, 
or  Old  Virginny,  as  he  was  called,  and  demanded  a  share 


:   f ! 


i 

1 


i^ 


',' 


II 


■'! 


>! 


r 


Jl'f   r- 


!  - 


422 


OLD  VIRGINNY. 


also  for  having  furnished  the  information  that  led  to  the 
discovery.  He  was  more  easily  placated  than  Comstock, 
for  after  some  negotiation  and  no  end  of  swearing,  ht 
was  bought  off  with  J25,  an  Indian  pony,  and  a  jug  of 
whisky,  the  additional  compliment  being  paid  him  of 
naming  the  new-found  mine  after  the  State  from  which  he 
came  and  which  furnished  him  with  a  nickname.  Finney 
was  killed  not  long  afterward  by  a  bucking  mule,  and  two 
of  his  associates  met  with  an  equally  luckless  fate. 
O'Reilly  died  insane,  and  Comstock,  after  permitting  in- 
calculable wealth  to  slip  through  his  hands,  became  almost 
a  pauper  and  shot  himself  while  searching  for  the  famous 
Lost  Cabin  mine  in  the  Big  Horn  range. 

The  Comstock  mine  has  made  more  money  for  the 
owners  in  the  years  which  have  followed  than  any  Other 
enterprise  of  its  kind  in  the  world.  Some  of  the  best 
known  of  the  mining  kings  have  lived  for  years  in  lux- 
urious palaces  as  the  result  of  the  ore  taken  from  this 
famous  lode. 

The  name  of  the  Nick  o*  Time  mine  in  Arizona  re- 
calls a  singular  story  of  its  discovery.  A  miner,  named 
John  Quincy  Adams,  who  was  prospecting  in  the  moun- 
tains of  that  territory,  while  wearily  trudging  along  one 
hot  day  through  a  gulch  where  the  sun  beat  fiercely 
upon  his  back,  suddenly  smelled  smoke.  He  glanced 
quickly  about  him  to  ascertain  its  origin,  but,  seeing 
nothing,  resumed  his  journey.  An  instant  later  the 
smell  returned,  stronger  than  before,  and  a  tiny  wreath 
of  smoke  curling  about  his  ears  gave  him  warning  that 


•a.=^grfr-wrv7ftnrgfc^^iagyiii=^ 


BLOWING  OPEN  A  GOLD  MINE. 


423 


his  haversack  was  on  fire.  Following  the  usual  practice 
of  miners,  his  kit  included  a  large  lens  for  examining  the 
specimens  and  the  sand  in  his  pan.  This,  for  want  of 
room,  he  had  hung  on  the  outside  of  his  haversack, 
where,  concentrating  the  rays  of  the  sun,  it  had  set  the 
pack  on  fire.  Stowed  up  in  the  haversack  were  twelve 
or  fifteen  pounds  of  powder,  and  Adams,  as  soon  as  he 
realized  his  peril,  lost  no  time  in  dropping  his  burden 
between  two  huge  stones  and  getting  as  far  away  as 
possible  before  it  exploded.  Then,  from  a  safe  distance, 
he  watched  the  faint  puffs  of  smoke  and  waited  until  the 
expected  explosion  was  over,  so  that  he  could  return 
and  gather  up  the  remnants  of  his  scanty  belongings. 
Suddenly  there  was  a  deafening  report,  and  the  ground 
trembled  beneath  the  feet  of  the  miner,  who  dodged 
behind  a  friendly  rock  to  escape  the  fragments  of  flying 
wreck.  The  danger  past,  he  hurried  to  the  spot  to 
gather  up  what  he  could  find,  when,  to  his  surprise  and 
joy,  he  discovered  that  the  quartz  that  had  been  blown 
up  fairly  glittered  with  gold.  His  powder  had  done 
better  on  its  own  account  than  it  had  ever  done  on  his, 
and  had  literally  blown  open  a  gold  mine  for  his  benefit. 
For  that  reason  Adams  named  his  mine  the  Nick  o* 
Time.  Many  thousands  of  dollars  soon  passed  into 
Adams's  pocket,  and  he  became  imv^ensely  rich. 

The  Christmas  Gift  mine  in  California  got  its  name  in 
not  less  curious  fashion.  Its  discoverer  was  one  of  a 
hunting  party  that  had  gone  out  from  San  Francisco 
during  the  Christmas  holidays.     While  following  a  nar- 


t ' 


i 


,1 


I  • 


424 


CHRISTMAS  GIFT  MINE. 


row  trail  that  skirted  the  side  of  a  steep  hill,  his  horse 
suddenly  stumbled  and,  with  its  rider,  slid  into  the  gulch 
below.  Chancing  to  be  the  last  in  the  line  and  some 
distance  behind  his  companions,  the  huntsman  was  not 
missed  for  some  moments.  When  his  absence  was 
finally  noticed  the  party  turned  back  to  look  for  him, 
fearing  some  untoward  accident.  At  first  no  trace  of 
him  could  be  found,  but  the  place  where  the  horse  had 
slipped  and  fallen  over  the  bank,  together  with  the 
traces  of  the  fall,  being  plainly  visible,  the  men  slowly 
picked  their  way  down  the  slope  and,  when  near  the 
bottom,  came  upon  an  interesting  spectacle.  Just  behind 
a  clump  of  bushes,  which  rider  and  horse  had  crashed 
through  on  their  way  down,  stood  the  animal,  apparently 
uninjured,  while  on  a  slab  of  rock  nearby  the  man  is 
capering  like  an  Indian  at  a  ghost  dance.  Fear  s  .d 
the  members  of  the  rescuing  party  that  their  friend  had 
lost  his  senses,  but  catching  sight  of  them  he  ceased  his 
dancing  and  beckoned  them  to  come  to  him.  When 
they  joined  him  he  showed  them  several  lumps  of  almost 
pure  gold,  hastily  knocked  from  the  ledge  with  a  stone 
for  a  hammer,  and  announced  his  discovery  of  a  gold 
mine.  The  sliding  horse  had  brought  up  against  the 
ledge  and  the  restive  animal  in  trying  to  rise  had  kicked 
the  moss  from  the  stone  and  thus  disclosed  a  gold-bear- 
ing vein  of  exceptional  richness,  which  its  lucky  finder 
appropriately  named  the  Christmas  Gift. 

Still,  pluck  is  often  more  potent  than  luck,  and  Jim 
Whitlach,  of  Nevada,  a  famous  miner,  lately  dead,  was 


..JiBiiwiy***  ^.'■'ifB 


I 


I 


PLUCK  OR  LUCK. 


427 


wont  to  say  that  the  man  who  followed  prospecting  for 
a  dozen  years  or  more  was  sure  in  the  course  of  time  to 
strike  it  rich.  The  history  of  David  Swickhimer  and  his 
wife  gives  striking  confirmation  to  Whitlach's  dictum.  It 
was  in  1884  that  Swickhimer  appeared  in  Rico,  Col.,  and 
opened  a  small  saloon,  which  soon  numbered  among  its 
patrons  a  prospector  named  George  Barlow.  The  latter 
was  half  owner  of  several  mines  near  Rico,  and  when,  in 
1885,  he  asked  Swickhimer,  who  by  this  time  had  found 
liquor-selling  a  long  road  to  wealth,  to  buy  out  his  part- 
ner, the  saloon-keeper  accepted  the  proposition.  The 
prospect  looked  good,  but  the  mineral  was  slow  in  com- 
ing in,  and  when  the  shaft  was  250  feet  deep  Barlow  gave 
up  in  disgust  and  presented  his  half  of  the  claim  to  his 
now  penniless  partner,  whose  money  had  all  been  swept 
into  the  hole  on  the  side  of  Dolores  Mountain.  Swick- 
himer's  spirits  had  also  sunk  to  a  low  ebb,  and  when  a 
miner  with  some  money  and  more  faith  offered  him  $500 
for  the  claim  he  was  inclined  to  accept  the  proposition, 
and  would  have  done  so  had  not  his  plucky  wife  entered 
an  emphatic  protest  against  it.  Instead,  she  found  a 
place  as  a  servant,  and  in  due  course  of  time  work, 
single-handed,  was  begun  in  the  shaft  by  the  husband. 

Then  came  an  unlooked-for  turn  in  the  road.  Un- 
known to  her  husband,  Mrs.  Swickhimer  had  invested 
in  a  lottery,  and  one  day  word  came  to  her  that  her 
ticket  had  drawn  a  prize  of  $^,ooQ.  This  money  was 
promptly  put  into  this  shaft,  and  while  it  lasLcd  every- 
thing went  swimmingly,  but  with  old  debts  to  be  paid 


1 


11 


t    I   [I 


i    'l 


■t 


If 


1? 


428 


THE  SWICKHIMERS. 


and  new  machinery  to  be  bought,  in  a  short  space  of 
time  he  again  found  himself  penniless,  with  nothing  to 
show  for  his  time,  labor,  and  money  but  a  hole  a  little 
less  than  than  300  feet  deep  and — no  ore.  Once  more 
the  Swickhimers  proved  the  sturdy  stuff  of  which  they 
were  made.  They  went  to  work  for  wages,  and  as  soon 
as  they  had  saved  a  few  hundred  dollars  operations  were 
resumed  in  their  mine.  Their  labor  and  weary  waiting 
now  had  their  reward,  for  when  3(X)  feet  of  depth  had 
been  gained  the  long-sought-for  vein  was  struck,  and  it 
ran  500  ounces  of  silver  and  five  ounces  of  gold  to  the 
ton.  That  was  eight  years  ago,  and  to-day  Swickhimer 
is  President  of  the  Rico  National  Bank  and  the  owner 
of  a  great  many  houses  in  Denver  and  several  business 
blocks  in  Pueblo.  In  two  years  and  a  half  he  took  out 
of  his  mine  ji  1,000,000  worth  of  gold  and  silver,  and 
then  sold  it  to  an  English  syndicate  for  J  1,500, 000  cash. 
His  wife,  the  star  that  led  him  on  to  success,  is  also  rich 
in  her  own  right,  for  his  first  act  after  selling  the  mine 
was  to  make  over  to  her  two- thirds  of  the  purchase- 
money.  Their  days  of  scrimping  economy,  thanks  to  a 
woman's  pluck,  are  ended  for  good  and  all.  But  with 
the  money  happiness  did  not  come  to  the  couple,  for 
thev  have  since  been  divorced. 

Pluck  also  made  a  many-times  millionaire  of  Thomas 
Cruse,  discoverer  of  the  famous  Drum  Lunncn  mine  in 
Montana.  A  dozen  years  ago  Cruse,  who  had  been  a 
miner  from  his  teens,  could  be  found  at  the  bottom  of 
the  claim  he  had  located  in  the  rough  mountain  country, 


THOMAS  CRUSE. 


429 


a  few  miles  from  Helena,  working  with  pick  and  shovel 
for  the  treasure  he  never  lost  hope  of  finding.  His 
neighbors,  who  called  him  Old  Tommy,  looked  upon  him 
as  a  harmless  crank,  and  when,  after  years  of  patient 
delving  and  digging,  he  struck  into  a  vein  of  rich  ore, 
few  placed  the  value  of  the  mine,  where  he  lived  and 
worked  alone,  so  high  as  did  tne  owner.  When  he  re- 
fused ji5oo,ooo  for  it  the  people  of  Helena  said  he  was 
foolish,  and  when  he  turned  away  from  an  offer  of 
$1,000,000  they  set  him  down  as  a  fool.  But  the  miner 
was  wiser  than  those  who  had  nothing  save  advice  to 
give  him,  and  eventually  received  his  price,  $3,000,000 
and  a  goodly  number  of  shares  in  the  new  company. 
Then,  as  so  often  is  the  case,  the  old  familiarity  was 
dropped  and  the  Tommy  of  other  days  became  Mr. 
Thomas  Cruse,  capitalist.  A  kindly-hearted,  thoroughly 
honest  man,  of  whom  all  who  knew  him  are  ready  to  say 
a  good  word,  he  is  in  thes'*  days  a  familiar  figure  on  the 
streets  of  Helena,  and  the  <  .ident  of  a  savini;>  bank 
in  the  city  where,  when  a  struggl'-  j  prospector,  he  often 
found  it  difficult  to  get  trusted  for  enough  to  keep  him- 
self alive — a  notable  example  of  the  uns  and  d(  vvns  of  a 
miner's  life.  .   . 

Pluck  also  made  a  millionaire  of  N.  C.  Creede,  from 
whom  the  town  of  Creede,  Col.,  takes  it  namr  A  native 
of  Indiana,  reared  in  Iowa,  he  entered  th(  ogular  army 
when  he  was  nineteen,  and  for  seven  years  served  as  a 
scout  against  the  Indians.  In  1869  he  took  up  the  life 
of  a  prospector,  and  for  upwards  of  two  decades  roamed 


>!' 


O' 


II 


i'l.^ 


430 


N.  C.  CREEDE. 


hit 


the  mountains  of  the  West  in  search  of  silver-bearing 
quartz.  Usually  a  partner  kept  him  company  in  his 
wanderings,  but  now  and  then  he  could  get  no  one,  either 
for  love  or  money,  to  share  them.  Each  year  he  stayed 
in  the  mountains  until  the  snow  came,  and  many  months 
went  by  without  his  seeing  the  face  or  hearing  the  voice 
of  a  fellow-being.  Twice  he  was  stricken  with  pneu- 
monia in  the  mountains.  Luckily  he  had  a  companion 
each  time,  or  death  would  have  ended  his  prospecting  for 
good  and  all.  However,  his  labor  and  hardships  counted 
for  naught,  and  the  spring  of  1890  found  him  as  poor  as 
he  had  been  twenty  years  before. 

Still  hopeful  and  scout  of  heart,  Creede  resumed  his 
wanderings,  and  in  May  of  the  year  just  named  struck 
some  float  on  the  side  of  Mammoth  Mountain,  near 
the  site  of  the  present  town  of  Creede.  Float  is  the 
name  given  to  stray  pieces  of  rock  broken  from  a  min- 
eral-bearing ore  and  washed  down  a  mountain  by  water 
and  frost.  He  tied  his  burros  and  began  to  follow  it, 
climbing  the  mountain  in  the  trail  of  the  float  all  day. 
The  sun  was  beating  down  on  him ;  the  glint  of  the 
float  under  his  feet  was  blinding;  but  still  he  pushed 
forward,  and  just  as  a  gorgeous  sunset  reddened  the 
western  sky  the  tired  man  lifted  his  head,  and  there,  pro- 
jecting out  in  front  of  him,  was  a  bowlder  of  silicate  as 
big  as  a  house !  He  had  found  the  source  of  the  float 
which  he  had  followed  all  day.  "I  almost  screamed 
with  delight,"  said  he  afterward.  "  I  knew  it  would 
come  some  day,  but  the  idea  of  flnding  it  in  such  shape 


REININGER  AND  HAAS. 


433 


was  appalling  to  me.  I  staked  ofif  a  claim,  which  I 
named  the  Mammoth,  and  then  went  back  to  camp  and 
slept  as  I  hadn't  slept  for  years  before." 

Fortune,  after  eluding  Creede  for  half  a  lifetime,  now 
showered  her  favors  upon  him.  The  sale  of  the  Mam- 
moth and  of  three  other  claims,  including^  the  Holy 
Moses,  brought  him  $25,000,  and  the  confidence  and 
financial  backing  of  David  H.  Moffat,  a  wealthy  banker 
of  Denver.  Two  Germans,  named  Reininger  and  Haas, 
were  prospecting  a  claim  on  Bachelor  Mountain  when 
in  August,  1 89 1,  along  came  Creede,  with  his  eyes  open 
as  of  old.  What  he  saw  about  the  Reininger-Haas  dig- 
gings made  him  laugh.  There  was  a  hole  in  the  ground 
where  there  was  small  prospect  of  striking  anything 
short  of  China,  and  a  stake  with  a  notice  on  it,  which  no 
man  could  interpret.  But  the  scene  round  about  was 
cheering  to  a  wonderful  degree.  The  translucent  rocks 
that  could  be  found  there  by  the  ton  were  of  amethyst 
quartz.  A  mine  worth  millions  was  just  under  the  roots 
of  the  grass  and  the  flowers,  while  ao  end  of  wealth  pro- 
truded into  the  sunshine.  It  would  have  been  easy  for 
the  experienced  Creede  to  have  deprived  Reininger  and 
Haas  of  all  right  in  the  vein,  but  he  was  not  that  kind  of 
a  man.  Instead,  he  helped  to  set  their  stakes  properly, 
and  then  located  a  claim  on  the  vein  at  the  end  of  theirs, 
which  he  named  the  Amethyst.  With  Moffat's  money 
behind  him  he  at  once  began  digging  and  shipping  ore 
from  what  has  proved  to  be  one  of  the  richest  silver 
mines  in  Colorado,  and  six  months  later  he  had  realized 


\\i 


Hi 
it 


>\ 


!•    I 


I! 


HI  H 


434 


WINFIELD  S.  STRATTON. 


the  hope  that  for  so  many  years  spurred  him  on.     He 
had  attained  the  income  of  a  millionaire. 

The  plucky  and  long-continued  battle  against  ill  for- 
tune waged  by  Winfield  S.  Stratton,  now  the  wealthiest 
resident  of  Cripple  Creek,  has  had  as  happy  an  ending 
as  the  story  of  which  Creede  is  the  hero.  Prior  to  1 89 1 
Stratton  was  a  carpenter.  That  was  his  trade,  but  he 
felt  a  call  to  prospect.  He  would  push  the  jackplane 
long  enough  to  get  a  grub  stake,  and  then  hasten  to  the 
newest  mining  camp.  Almost  every  camp  in  Colorado 
claimed  him  as  a  resident  at  one  time  or  another.  He 
prospected  every  gulch  and  hillside  in  the  gold  camps, 
and  made  futile  search  for  carbonates  in  Leadville,  For 
many  years  Stratton  wandered  over  the  face  of  nature 
looking  for  float.  When  Cripple  Creek  came  into  notice  he 
was  working  at  his  trade  in  Pueblo.  Too  poor  to  travel 
by  rail,  he  walked  into  the  new  country  and  located  a  claim 
on  the  slope  of  Battle  Mountain.  He  entered  his  claim 
desperately,  more  to  have  one  than  because  he  had  any 
faith  in  its  future.  His  becoming  a  millionaire  wa':  but 
the  result  of  his  customary  hard  luck.  He  had  located 
two  claims,  and  set  up  his  stakes  on  July  4th,  1891. 
Being  nothing  if  not  patriotic,  he  named  one  claim 
Washington  and  the  other  Independence.  The  latter 
showed  the  best  prospects,  and  Stratton  bent  his  ener- 
gies to  its  development.  One  day  he  struck  a  good  ore 
body  and  gladly  accepted  an  offer  of  $10,000  for  the 
claim.  The  would-be  purchaser  gave  him  $1,000  to 
bind  the  bargain,  but  was  never  able  to  make  good  the 


LUCKY  FAILURE. 


435 


H( 


balance.  Suing  the  person  who  had  contracted  for  the 
mine  proved  a  losing  venture,  and  Stratton  dejectedly 
resumed  work.  The  failure  to  make  a  sale,  however, 
was  the  luckiest  thing  that  ever  happened  to  him,  for  in  ' 
the  five  years  that  have  since  elapsed  he  has  taken  out 
$5,cxx),ooo  worth  of  ore,  and  has  {^3,000,000  worth  of  ore 
exposed.  He  has  declined  a  cash  offer  of  Jio,cx)o,cxx) 
for  his  property,  and  has  to  wage  a  hand-to-hand  fight 
with  fate  to  keep  his  income  from  the  Independence 
below  jj 1 50,000  per  month.  He  owns  other  properties 
also,  and  his  present  fortune  is  estimated  at  not  less 
than  Ji20,ooo,ooo. 

While  Australia  probably  leads  the  gold  world  in  the 
size  of  nuggets,  or  pieces  of  almost  pure  gold,  picked  up 
by  chance  or  by  the  miner  in  search  of  ore,  many  more 
have  been  found  in  America  than  in  any  other  land. 

The  first  big  lumps  of  gold  found  in  California  created 
a  great  excitement  among  the  miners.  They  at  once 
began  picturing  in  imagination  masses  of  gold  larger 
than  could  be  lifted  by  a  dozen  men.  It  was  a  common 
camp-fire  amusement.  There  were  afloat  stories  of  men 
sitting  down  to  starve  by  huge  golden  bowlders  rather 
than  risk  leaving  their  finds  to  go  in  search  of  trans- 
portation facilities.  The  first  nugget  of  sufficient  size 
to  create  more  than  a  mere  local  sensation  was  found 
by  a  young  man  named  Henrickson.  It  is  related  that 
he  found  it  in  the  Mokelumne  River  while  in  the  act  of 
taking  a  drink  from  that  stream.  The  nugget  weighed 
nearly  twenty-five  pounds.     The  finder  at  once  hastened 


Hi 


i 


i'. 


436 


TWENTY-FIVE  rOUND  NUGGET. 


■I  i.i 

i  i'' 


to  San  Francisco  with  his  prize,  where  he  at  once  placed 
it  in  the  hands  of  Colonel  Mason  for  safe-keeping.  The 
big  lump  was  sent  to  New  York  and  placed  on  exhibi- 
tion. It  produced  great  excitement,  and  was  probably 
the  cause  of  many  a  man  striking  out  for  California. 
The  largest  mass  of  gold  ever  found  in  California  was 
that  dug  out  at  Carson  Hill,  Calaveras  County,  in  1854. 
It  weighed  195  pounds.  Oi'iher  lumps  weighing  several 
pounds  were  found  at  the  same  place. 

August  1 8th,  i860,  W.  A.  Parish  and  Harry  Warner 
took  from  the  Monumental  quartz  mine.  Sierra  County, 
a  mass  of  gold  and  quartz  weighing  133  pounds.  It  was 
sold  to  R.  B.  Woodward,  of  San  Francisco,  for  $2 1 ,636.52. 
It  was  exhibited  at  Woodward's  Gardens  for  some  time, 
then  was  melted  down.  It  yielded  gold  to  the  value  of 
j^i  7,654.94.  August  4th,  1858,  Ira  A.  Willard  found  on 
the  west  branch  of  Feather  River  a  nugget  which 
weighed  54  pounds  avoirdupois  before,  and  49^^  pounds 
after  melting.  A  nugget  dug  at  Kelsey,  El  Dorado 
County,  was  sold  for  ^^4,700.  In  1864  a  nugget  was  found 
m  the  Middle  Fork  of  the  American  River,  two  miles 
from  Michigan  Bluff,  that  weighed  eighteen  pounds  ten 
ounces,  and  was  sold  for  $4,204  by  the  finder. 

In  1 8 50,  at  Corona,  Tuolumne  County,  was  found  a  gold 
quartz  nugget  which  weighed  151  pounds  6  ounces. 
Half  a  mile  east  of  Columbia,  Tuolumne  County,  near 
the  Knapp  ranch,  a  Mr.  Strain  found  a  nugget  which 
weighed  fifty  pounds  avoirdupois.  It  yielded  $8,500 
when  melted.    In  1849  was  found  in  Sullivan's  Creek, 


SOME  BIG  ONES. 


437 


Tuolumne  County,  a  nugget  that  weighed  twenty-eight 
pounds  avoirdupois.  In  1871  a  nugget  was  found  in 
Kanaka  Creek,  Sierra  County,  that  weighed  ninety-six 
pounds.  At  Rattlesnake  Creek,  the  same  year,  a  nugget 
weighing  106  pounds  2  ounces  was  found.  A  quartz 
bowlder  found  in  French  Gulch,  Sierra  County,  in  1851, 
yielded  Ji8,ocx)  in  gold. 

In  1867  a  bowlder  of  gold  quartz  was  found  at  Pilot 
Hill,  El  Dorado  County,  that  yielded  $8,000  when  worked 
up.  It  was  found  in  what  is  known  as  the  "  Bowlder 
Gravel"  claim,  from  which  many  smaller  gold  quartz 
nuggets  have  been  taken  at  various  times.  Some  years 
ago  a  Frenchman  found  a  nugget  of  almost  pure  gold, 
worth  over  $5,000,  in  Spring  Gulch,  Tuolumne  County. 
The  next  day  the  man  became  insane.  He  was  sent  to 
the  Stockton  Asylum,  and  the  nugget  was  forwarded  to 
the  French  Consul  at  San  Francisco,  who  sent  its  value 
to  the  family  of  the  finder  in  France.  In  1854  a  mass 
of  gold  was  found  at  Columbia,  Tuolumne,  weighing 
thirty  pounds,  and  yielded  $6,625.  A  Mr.  Virgin  found 
at  Gold  Hill,  in  the  same  county,  a  bowlder  that  weighed 
thirty-one  pounds  eight  ounces,  and  when  melted  yielded 
$6,500. 

A  gold  quartz  bowlder  found  at  Minnesota,  Sierra 
County,  weighed  twenty-two  pounds  and  two  ounces, 
and  yielded  $5,000.  In  1850  a  nugget  was  found  at 
French  Gulch,  in  the  same  county,  that  weighed  twenty- 
one  pounds  and  eleven  ounces,  and  contained  gold  to 
the  value  of  $4,893.     In  1876  J.  D.  Colgrove,  of  Dutch 


I  ■ 


m\ 


438 


RICHES  IN  LUMPS. 


Flat,  Placer  County,  found  a  white  quartz  bowlder  in  the 
Polar  Star  hydraulic  claim  from  which  he  obtained  gold 
to  the  value  of  $5,760. 

At  the  Monumental  quartz  mine.  Sierra  County,  in 
1869,  was  found  a  mass  of  gold  that  weighed  ninety-five 
pounds  six  ounces.  It  was  found  in  decomposed  quartz 
at  a  depth  of  twenty-five  feet  below  the  surface.  This 
was  the  only  "  pay  "  found  in  that  particular  part  of  the 
mine.  All  the  auriferous  energy  of  the  vein  at  that 
point  seemed  to  have  been  concentrated  in  the  one 
nugget.  In  1855  ^  ""gget  weighing  sixty  pounds  was 
found  at  Alleghany  town.  Sierra  County.  It  was  a  mass 
of  gold  taken  from  a  q'lartz  vein.  Several  other  large 
"  chunks  "  were  taken  from  the  same  mine — lumps  of 
nearly  pure  gold  weighing  from  one  pound  to  ten  or 
twelve  pounds.  These  masses  of  gold  were  dug  by 
Frank  Cook  (afterward  City  Marshal  of  Marysville)  and 
others,  his  partners. 

In  1 85 1  a  Mr.  Chapman  and  others  flumed  a  set  of 
claims  on  the  middle  Yuba.  When  the  water  was  turned 
from  the  river  into  the  flume,  about  the  first  thing  seen 
in  the  exposed  bed  of  the  channel  was  a  horseshoe- 
shaped  mass  of  pure  gold,  which  weighed  twenty-eight 
pounds.  This  was  a  very  handsome  and  "  showy " 
nugget.  It  was  sold  to  Major  Jack  Stratman  of  San 
Francisco. 

The  Sailor  Diggings,  on  the  north  fork  of  the  Yuba, 
just  below  the  mouth  of  Sailor  Ravine,  about  three  miles 
above  Downieville,  were  wonderfully  rich  in  nuggets. 


astsfss^sf 


PLENTY  OF  NUGGETS. 


439 


The  diggings  were  owned  and  worked  by  a  party  of 
English  sailors  in  185 1.  In  their  claim  the  sailors  found 
a  nugget  of  pure  gold  that  weighed  thirty-one  pounds. 
They  also  found  a  great  number  of  nuggets  weighing 
from  five  to  fifteen  pounds.  The  party  all  left  together 
for  England.  They  took  with  them  all  the  nuggets  they 
found — both  great  and  small.  They  were  carried  in  two 
canvas  sacks,  the  weight  being  too  great  to  be  conve- 
niently handled  in  a  single  sack.  When  the  party  reached 
England,  they  for  a  considerable  time  made  a  business 
of  exhibiting  their  collection  of  nuggets  and  various  fancy 
specimens  in  all  the  large  towns  and  cities,  thus  infecting 
great  numbers  of  people  with  the  gold-digging  fever,  for 
just  at  that  time  came  the  world-startling  news  of  the 
great  gold  discoveries  made  in  April  of  that  year  in 
Australia. 

In  French  Ravine,  Sierra  County,  in  1855,  there  was 
found  in  the  claim  of  a  Missourian  named  Smith  a 
double  nugget  of  almost  pure  gold.  The  larger  of  the 
two  nuggets  weighed  fifty  pounds,  and  connected  with 
it  by  a  sort  of  neck  was  a  lump  of  gold  that  weighed 
fifteen  pounds.  In  taking  out  the  large  nugget  the  two 
were  broken  apart.  The  large  nugget  yielded  $10,000 
and  the  small  one  $3,000. 

In  September,  1850,  L.  P.  Wardell,  now  in  Virginia 
City,  found  in  Mad  Canon,  on  the  middle  fork  of  tlic 
American  River,  a  nugget  of  solid  gold  weighing  six 
pounds.  The  nugget  had  in  it  a  round  hole,  and  the 
finder  made  use  of  it  in  his  cabin  as  a  candlestick,     k 


V 


m 


I 


r : 


440 


A  VALUABLE  CANDLESTICK. 


was  doubtless  the  most  valuable  candlestick  on  the 
Pacific  Coast.  After  the  nugget  had  been  thus  used  so 
long  that  it  was  covered  with  candle  grease,  the  owner 
sold  it,  grease  and  all. 

In  the  early  days  of  placer  mining  in  California  col- 
ored miners  were  proverbially  lucky.  Companies  of 
white  men  were  always  ready  to  take  in  a  colored  man 
as  a  partner,  believing  he  would  bring  them  good  luck. 
Steve  Gillis,  of  Virginia,  Nev.,  a  veteran  printer  and 
pioneer  miner  of  the  Pacific  Coast,  tells  of  the  fol- 
lowing sample  of  "nigger  luck:"  In  1868  a  colored 
miner  who  was  out  on  a  prospecting  trip  found  on  the 
slope  of  Table  Mountain,  Tuolumne  County,  a  nugget 
that  weighed  thirty-five  pounds  avoirdupois  and  yielded 
over  $7,000.  The  nugget  was  found  on  the  slope  where 
Table  Mountain  drifts  down  toward  Shaw's  Flat.  The 
man  saw  a  corner  of  it  sticking  out  of  the  ground,  and, 
digging  it  up,  he  planted  it  in  a  new  place  near  by, 
marking  the  spot,  and  continued  on  his  way  to  his  in- 
tended prospecting  ground. 

He  did  not  take  up  a  claim  where  he  found  the  nugget, 
as  he  believed  it  to  have  rolled  down  from  some  point 
high  up  on  Table  Mountain.  He  found  such  good  pay 
in  the  place  he  went  to  prospect  that  he  remained  there 
at  work  for  several  weeks,  feeling  quite  at  ease  in  regard 
to  the  big  nugget  he  had  cached. 

Finally  he  quit  work  in  his  new  diggings  and  set  out 
to  look  for  his  big  nugget.  On  coming  in  sight  of  the 
spot  where  he  had  buried  it  he  almost  dropped  in  his 


71 


r, 
z 


z 

w 

-' 

r. 


\ 


A  CLOSE  CALL. 


443 


tracks,  for  he  saw  a  big  company  of  men  at  work  just 
where  he  had  made  his  "  plant."  The  men  proved  to  be. 
a  let  of  Italians  and  they  had  worked  up  to  within  about 
ten  feet  of  the  spot  where  lay  buried  the  big  nugget. 
The  colored  miner  explained  the  situation  to  the  Italians 
and  they  permitted  him  to  dig  up  and  carry  away  his 
nugget. 

Near  Sonora,  Tuolumne  County,  in  1852,  a  nugget 
weighing  forty-five  pounds  and  containing  gold  to  the 
value  of  about  $8,000  was  found.  The  finder  had  a  friend 
who  was  far  gone  with  consumption,  yet  was  trying  to 
work  in  the  mine.  The  owner  of  the  nugget  saw  that  by 
working  in  the  water  and  lifting  heavy  bowlders  this 
man  was  fast  killing  himself.  He  told  his  friend  to  take 
the  big  nugget  and  go  back  to  the  States  and  exhibit  it, 
as  at  that  time  such  a  mass  of  native  gold  was  a  curi- 
r^'ity  to  see  which  many  would  willingly  pay  a  reason- 
able sum. 

As  the  ailing  man  was  well  educated  it  was  arranged 
that  besides  the  nugget  he  should  take  some  fine  dust, 
"chispas,"  gold-bearing  quartz,  black  sand,  gravel,  and 
dirt  from  a  placer,  and  the  like,  and  with  all  was  to  fix  up 
a  lecture  on  life  in  the  mines,  mining  operations,  and 
California  in  general.  When  the  owner  of  the  nugget 
wanted  it  or  its  value  he  was  to  let  the  other  know  of 
his  need. 

The  sick  man  took  the  nugget  to  the  State*,  got  up 
his  lecture,  and  did  well  wherever  he  went.  For  a  time 
t!»e  miner  heard  from  his  friend  pretty  regularly,  then 


■m\ 


;:l 


444 


HIS  FRIEND  DIES. 


for  months  lost  track  of  him.  He  began  to  think  his 
nugget  lost ;  that  perhaps  his  friend  had  been  murdered 
and  robbed  in  some  out-of-the-way  place. 

One  day,  however,  a  letter  reached  the  miner  from  a 
banker  in  New  Orleans,  telling  him  that  his  friend  had 
died  in  that  city,  but  had  left  the  big  nugget  at  the  bank 
subject  to  his  order.  The  miner  wrote  to  have  the  nug- 
get melted  down,  and  in  due  time  he  received  a  check 
for  a  little  over  ji8,ooo. 

Pocket  mining  as  practiced  by  the  experts  of  California 
is  a  branch  of  gold-hunting  that  may  be  said  to  stand  by 
itself  as  an  *'  art."  The  pocket  miner  follows  up  the 
trail  of  gold  thrown  off  from  a  quartz  vein  and  strewn 
down  a  mountain  slope  until  he  at  last  reaches  the 
mother  deposit  whence  the  gold  scattered  below  pro- 
ceeded. This  is  an  operation  which  sometimes  requires 
many  days  to  be  devoted  to  the  careful  washing  of  sam- 
ples of  dirt  taken  from  the  slope  of  a  mountain.  Many 
rich  pockets  have,  however,  been  found  by  accident. 
One  of  the  richest  of  the  pocket  mines  in  California  was 
that  in  the  Morgan  mine  on  Carson  Hill,  Calaveras 
County,  from  which  $110,000  was  thrown  out  at  one 
blast.  The  gold  so  held  the  quartz  together  that  it  had 
to  be  cut  apart  with  cold  chisels.  It  is  estimated  that 
this  mine  yielded  J2, 800,000  in  the  years  1850  and  1851, 
and  new  pockets  have  since  been  discovered  almost 
yearly  somewhere  in  the  peculiar  formation  at  and  about 
Carson  Hill. 

The  telluride  veins  of  Sierra  County,  extending  from 


^.fl 


RICH  POCKETS. 


445 


Minnesota  to  the  South  Yuba,  have  been  prolific  of 
pockets.  A  big  pocket  found  in  the  Fellows'  mine  on 
this  belt  yielded  $250,cxx>.  Many  other  pockets  yield- 
ing from  $5,000  to  $50,000  have  been  found  in  this  region. 

Many  rich  pockets  have  been  found  about  Grass  Val- 
ley, Nevada  County ;  Auburn,  Placer  County,  and  Sonora, 
Tuolumne  County,  The  "  Reece  Pocket,"  Grass  Valley, 
contained  ^^40,000.  This  sum  was  pounded  out  in  a 
hand-mortar  in  less  than  a  month.  Near  Grass  Valley 
a  pocket  that  yielded  ji6o,ooo  was  found  by  a  sick  "  pil- 
grim," who  was  in  search  of  health,  and  knew  nothing 
about  mining. 

The  "Green  Emigrant"  pocket  vein,  near  Auburn, 
was  found  by  an  emigrant  who  had  never  seen  a  mine. 
It  yielded  j^i  60,000.  This  find  was  made  within  thirty 
yards  of  a  road  that  had  been  traveled  daily  for  twenty 
years.  No  more  "  pay"  was  found  after  the  first  pocket 
was  worked.  The  "  Devol "  pocket,  in  Sonora,  along- 
side the  main  street  of  the  town,  owned  by  three  men, 
yielded  $200,000  in  1879.  It  was  nearly  all  taken  out 
in  three  weeks.  The  *'  grit  specimen,"  showing  arbures- 
cent  crystallization,  sent  to  the  Paris  ExpositiOii,  was 
found  in  Spanish  Dry  Diggings,  El  Dorado  County, 
weighed  over  twenty  pounds  and  contained  over  $4,000 
in  gold.  About  $8,000  additional  of  the  same  kind  of 
gold  crystals  was  taken  from  the  same  pocket.  The 
formation  at  this  place  is  slate  and  a  fine-grained  sand- 
stone filled  with  crystals  of  iron  pyrites  in  cubes.  At 
American  Camp,  between  the  forks  of  the  Stanislaus,  in 


'  tj 


I  '\ 


il 

! 
I 


;  ! 


I- 


446 


FROM  THE  GRASS  ROOTS. 


1880,  Le  Roy  Reid  found  a  pocket  in  the  **  grass  roots," 
from  which  he  teok  out  j^8,200.  Near  Magalia,  Butte 
County,  in  1879,  a  pocket  paid  its  finder  {(400  per  two 
hours'  work. 

The  largest  liugget  ever  found  in  Nevada  was  one 
taken  out  of  the  Osceola  placer  mine  about  twenty  years 
ago.  It  weighed  twenty-four  pounds,  and  is  supposed 
to  have  contained  nearly  $4,000  in  gold.  A  hired  man 
found  and  stole  it,  but  repenting,  gave  up  to  the  owners 
in  a  month  or  two  over  $2,000  in  small  bars — all  he  had 
left  of  the  big  chunk.  In  the  same  mine,  about  a  year 
ago,  a  nugget  worth  $2,190  was  found. 

Montana's  largest  nugget  was  one  found  by  Ed  Ris- 
ing at  Snow  Shoe  Gulch,  on  the  Little  Blackfoot  River. 
It  was  worth  $3,356.  It  lay  twelve  feet  below  the  sur- 
face and  about  a  foot  above  the  bed-rock. 

Colorado's  biggest  nugget  was  found  at  Breckenridge. 
It  weighed  thirteen  pounds,  but  was  mixed  with  lead 
carbonate  and  quartz. 

The  pioneer  nuggets  in  the  United  States  were  found 
in  the  placers  of  the  Appalachian  range  of  mountains, 
where  gold  was  discovered  as  early  as  1828.  In  Octo- 
ber, 1828,  a  negro  found  grains  of  fine  gold  in  Bear 
Creek,  Georgia,  but  the  discovery  did  not  attract  much 
attention.  Presently  the  same  negro  found  a  nugget  in 
the  Nacoochee  River  worth  several  thousand  dollars. 
This  "  find  "  started  a  gold-hunting  furor.  Several  other 
nuggets  of  considerable  size  have  been  f^und  in  Georgia 
at  various  times. 


^^H 

^1 

1 

\  ■          -             

^^^^H 

4 

—  .^m^  ■"     " 

■ 

Juneau — Nearest  City  to  Chilkoot  Pass. 


NORTH  CAROUNA  LUMPS. 


449 


The  largest  nugget  ever  found  in  the  Appalachian 
mining  region  was  that  dug  at  the  Reed  mine  in  North 
Carolina.    It  weighed  eighty  pounds. 

In  the  same  State  some  children  playing  along  a  creek 
found  a  nugget  that  weighed  twelve  pounds.  The  quartz 
veins  of  this  region  generally  show  a  good  deal  of  coarse 
gold,  good-sized  lumps,  but  seldom  weighing  as  much  as 
a  pound. 


;  ■, 


Hi] 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Alaska's  silent  cmr. 

Auroral  Display  During  August— Awe-inspiring  Mirages—"  Dick"  Willongh- 
by's  Negative— A  Splendid  Business  Venture— Prince  Luigi's  Vision. 
—The  Most  Famous  Mirage  Anywhere  to  be  Found— L.  B.  French's 
Story  of  The  Silent  City— How  Willoughby  Made  His  Find— A  Stone 
Pile  for  a  Record  Vault— President  Jordan  Investigates— The  Scientific 
Explanation  df  Mirages— When  and  Where  They  Occur. 

BRILLIANT  aui^>ral  displays  and  mirages  often  ap- 
pear in  the  glacier  country  of  southeastern  Alaska 
during  the  month  of  August.  3y  refraction  the  ice-floes 
are  frequently  magnified  into  ice  cliffs  looo  feet  high, 
apparendy  barring  a  ship's  retreat  to  the  southward. 
Richard  C.  Willoughby,  familiarly  known  to  all  Alaskans 
as  ''Dick"  Willoughby,  in  1889  claimed  to  have  taken 
a  photograph  of  a  mirage  which  represented  a  birds-eye- 
view  of  an  old  English  city.  Since  then  nine  out  of  ten 
tourists  in  the  course  of  their  travels  through  Alaska  have 
spent  more  or  less  time  in  trying  to  get  a  glimpse  of 
what  is  called  in  the  guide  books  the  "Silent  City." 
The  discoverer  has  in  the  meantime  made  several  thou- 
sand dollars  through  the  sale  of  photographs  printed 
from  what  he  claims  to  be  the  original  negative. 

However  far  the  "  Silent  City"  (ails  in  having  a  scien- 
4«o 


PHANTOM  mSTORV. 


451 


tific  reason  for  its  existence  the  fact  remains  that  it  has  ex- 
cited and  still  excites  as  much  interest  as  any  one  feature  of 
scenic  Alaska.  Only  quite  recently  additional  import  has 
been  added  to  its  phantom  history  by  the  return  of  Prince 
Luigi  of  Italy,  who,  besides  having  made  the  ascent  of 
Mt.  St.  Elias  to  its  very  summit,  claims  also  to  have  had 
vouchsafed  him  a  grand  view  of  the  spectral  city,  a  most 
exquisite  yet  awe-inspiring  picture  impanelled  on  the 
sky  far  above  the  fleeting  clouds.  As  the  story  runs  the 
image  is  so  perfect  and  so  clear  that  the  astonished  be- 
holder can  scarcely  realize  that  it  is  not  indeed  a  real 
city  that  lies  outstretched  before  him.  H^  sees  well-de- 
fined houses  and  great  public  buildings  and  the  lofty  spires 
of  churches,  even  people  moving  about,  and  trees  and 
well-arranged  parks.  But  within  a  brief  half-hour  this  city 
grows  dim  and  vanishes,  and  no  wonder  that  the  be- 
holder rubs  his  eyes,  and  can  scarce  believe  his  senses. 

But  not  often  does  nature  record  this  wonderful  vision. 
It  has  flitted  before  the  eyes  of  but  few  men.  In  many 
years  it  has  been  seen  but  by  a  handful  of  travelers  and 
explorers. 

The  vision  rarely  lasts  more  than  half  an  hour,  when 
it  suddenly  vanishes  into  the  mists  that  begot  it, 
lieaving  the  astonished  observer  in  a  state  of  wonder  and 
awe,  feeling  that  he  must  have  been  in  a  dream  or  have 
been  fooled  by  some  trick  of  the  imagination  or  of  the 
optic  nerve. 

Prince  Luigi's  party  consisted  of  a  number  of  scientific 
men,  including  Lieutenant  Umberto  Cagni  of  the  Italian 


■'1 


453 


PBRPBCT  IMAGES. 


Army,  who  made  all  the  meteorological  observations; 
Mr.  Vittario  Sella,  a  famous  amatuer  photographer; 
Dr.  Filippo  de  Fillippi,  surgeon  of  the  party ;  and  Cava- 
lieri  Francesco  Gonella,  president  of  the  Alpine  Club  of 
Truin. 

It  was  in  the  early  morning  of  July  7th  last.  The 
Prince  and  his  party  were  returning  from  the  ocean  with 
supplies,  when  suddenly  a  city  appeared  before  their 
astonished  eyes.  They  had  not  noted  it  before ;  they 
knew  that  no  city  existed  at  this  spot,  and  yet  so  per- 
fect was  the  image  that  it  was  hard  to  disbelieve  in  its 
reality.  ^ 

"It  required  no  effort  of  imagination,"  said  one  of  the 
Prince's  party,  "to  liken  the  vision  to  a  cit).  It  was  so 
distinct  that  it  required  instead  strong  faith  to  believe 
that  it  was  not  what  it  appeared  to  be.  It  remained  a 
perfect  image  for  thirty  minutes  and  then  faded  away, 
while  in  its  place  appeared  a  rocky  ridge."  The  Prince 
and  his  party  were  singularly  fortunate  in  having  this 
vision  vouchsafed  to  them,  for  its  appearance  is  like 
angel's  visits,  few  and  far  between.  No  mirage  that 
•appears  anywhere  on  the  face  of  the  globe  is  so  distinct 
in  its  outlines,  and  it  is  perhaps  well  that  the  image  did 
not  last  long ;  otherwise  the  weary  traveler  and  ex- 
plorer might  follow  in  the  direction  of  this  will-o'-the- 
wisp-like  city  for  days,  in  the  hope  of  securing  com- 
fortable accommodations  within  its  walls. 

The  Prince  and  his  party  were  so  overcome  by  sur- 
prise that  unfortunately  they  did  not  secure  a  photograph 
of  the  "Silent  City." 


A  SPECTRB  CITY. 


453 


Mr,  L.  B.  French,  who  thinks  he  saw  the  city  outlined 
in  the  Willoughby  picture,  tells  of  his  experience  in  the 
foHowing  words : 

"About  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  an  early  July 
day  we  suddenly  perceived,  rising  above  the  glacier, 
over  in  the  direction  of  Mount  Fairweather,  what  at  first 
appeared  to  be  a  thin,  misty  cloud.  It  soon  became 
clearer,  and  we  distinctly  saw  a  spectre  city  moving  to- 
ward us.  We  could  plainl)  see  houses,  well-defined 
streets  and  trees.  Here  and  there  rose  tall  spires  over 
huge  buildings,  which  appeared  to  be  ancient  mosques 
or  cathedrals. 

''It  was  a  large  city,  one  which  would  contain  at  least 
one  hundred  thousand  inhabitants,  I  have  seen  Mil. 
waukee  miraged  over  Lake  Michigan,  and  this  city  ap- 
peared considerably  larger  than  that.  It  did  not  look 
like  a  modern  city — more  like  an  ancient  European  city. 
I  noticed  particularly  the  immense  height  of  the  spires. 
Of  course  we  were  much  excited.  The  Indians  who 
were  with  uis  were  overcome  with  superstitious  fear  and 
ran  away.  We  had  cameras,  and  separated  in  order  to 
take  it  from  different  points  of  view.  By  the  time  we 
reached  points  of  vantage  it  had  grown  fainter  and  soon 
disappeared.  I  should  say  the  spectacle  lasted  about 
twenty-five  minutes." 

Minor  W.  Bruce,  in  his  narrative  of  his  trip  up  the 
Alaskan  coast,  says  in  this  connection : 

"Two  years  previous  to  my  arrival  at  Juneau,  Pro- 
fessor Willoughby  had  been  exhibiting  a  negative  of  a 


i 


i', 


•a 


454 


A  PICTURB  OP  THB  CITY. 


picture  whic}i  he  said  he  had  succeeded  in  taking  of  a 
city  which  appeared  above  the  face  of  the  glacier  in  the 
longest  days  of  each  year,  and  which  was  brought  to 
his  attention  by  the  natives,  who  called  it  the  'Silent  City/ 
He  procured  a  camera,  and  in  three  successive  years 
made  the  journey  in  a  canoe  with  natives,  and  each  time 
was  able  to  make  an  exposure,  but  the  plate  that  had 
been  exposed  the  third  year  proved,  upon  development, 
to  be  the  only  one  that  contained  a  picture  of  the  city. 
It  was  a  weird-looking  negative  and,  contemplating  it 
while  the  professor  told  the  story  with  the  utmost  ear- 
nestness and  sincerity,  one  would  not  but  be  interested 
and  inclined  to  believe  it  to  be  true.  He  said  that  the 
city  always  appearei^  as  if  suspended  in  the  air,  just  in 
front  of  the  Fairweather  range  of  mountains.  The 
atmosphere  was  so  clear  that  the  peaks  many  miles  to 
the  north  were  distinctly  seen,  and  every  ridge  and  wal- 
low  and  curve  of  the  icy  crust  that  enveloped  them 
could  not  have  been  more  clearly  defined  had  they  been 
but  a  stone's  throw  away.  While  asleep  in  his  tent 
one  morning,  a  native  called  to  hiip  excitedly  to  get 
up ;  and  upon  looking  to  the  north  he  saw  a  strange- 
looking  object  hanging  over  the  sides  of  the  mountain, 
and  following  the  direction  of  a  stream  or  glow  of  light 
which  seemed  to  radiate  from  the  range  squarely  down 
upon  the  glaciers  at  the  head  of  the  bay.  Gradually  it 
became  more  distinct,  and  soon  assumed  the  appearance 
of  a  city  of  immense  proportions,  stretching  out  into  the 
distance  until  its  furthermost  limits  were  lost  to  view. 


THB  VISION  MOVBS  AWAY. 


455 


The  style  of  architecture  was  new  to  him.  Buildings  of 
massive  dimensions  extended  in  solid  and  unbroken 
blocks  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach.  The  solemn  walls 
of  cathedrals  arose  almost  to  the  skies,  and  his  imagina- 
tion reveled  in  silvery  music,  chanted  to  a  chorus  of 
tinkling  bells,  that  was  wafted  out  from  the  frescoed 
aisles  through  the  openings  of  gorgeously  painted  win- 
dows. The  entire  limits  of  the  city  were  confined  within 
a  halo  of  light,  dense,  yet  transparent,  pouring  its  soft 
glow  upon  roof  and  wall  and  window  in  glorious  trans- 
formation. To  the  right  and  left  ranges  of  mountains, 
covered  with  the  garb  of  winter,  formed  the  background. 
The  tops  of  buildings,  and  the  spires  ot"  churches,  ap- 
peared to  pierce  its  ghostly  robes,  yet  not  one  breath 
of  their  chilled  presence  extended  within  the  portals  of 
the  city.  Again,  he  seemed  to  hear  the  bells  from  the 
steeples  of  a  hundred  churches  mingling  sweet  and 
happy  melody,  yet,  within  the  whole  length  and  breadth 
of  this  boundless  city,  not  one  soul  could  be  seen.  Not 
even  a  shadow  darkened  the  light  for  an  instant.  All 
was  silent  as  the  grave  when  suddenly  the  vision  began 
to  move  away.  Its  glories  and  grandeur  lured  him 
with  a  fascination  which  he  could  not  resist.  But  as  he 
walked  forward,  it  seemed  to  recede  with  even  pace. 
Gradually,  though  he  quickened  his  step  to  get  within 
the  silent  portals  before  it  was  too  late,  it  was  wafted 
into  space  and  finally  lost  to  view. 

"In  the  summer  of  1 889  I  accompanied  Professor  Wil- 
loughby  to  Glacier  Bay  and  spent  six  weeks  in  exploring 


'II 


456 


BIRCH-BARK  RECORDS. 


the  glaciers  and  surrounding;  country.  Anxious  to  see 
the  spot  where  he  claimed  f:o  have  witnessed  this  won- 
derful sight,  although,  I  feel  free  to  say,  I  did  not  live  in 
very  high  expectations  of  gazing  upon  the  silent  citj;. 
One  day  we  ascended  the  side  of  a  mountain  fo  a  level 
space  affording  a  glorious  view  of  the  whole  bay.  He 
took  me  to  a  pile  of  rocks,  laid  carefully  one  upon  the 
other,  to  a  height  of  perhaps  five  feet.  Slowly  he  com- 
menced to  throw  off  the  rocks  until  an  opening  was  made 
in  the  center,  and  inserting  his  arn,  he  drew  out  what 
appeared  to  be  a  scroll  or  book  made  from  several  leaves 
of  birch  bark.  It  was  badly  mildewed  and  upon  unroll- 
ing it  a  pencil  fell  to  the  ground.  The  half-dozen  pages 
looked  bright,  and  .contained  a  record,  stating  that  the 
object  of  three  trips  made  to  this  locality,  in  as  many  dif- 
ferent years  was  to  secure  a  photograph  of  the  city. 

"During  the  six  weeks  I  spent  with  Professor  Willough- 
by,  the  relations  between  us,  in  camp  and  in  our  travels, 
were  such  as  to  encourage  an  exchange  of  confidences 
on  many  subjects,  and  although  the  subject  of  the  silent 
city  and  mirages  was  often  referred  to,  he  never  by  word 
or  implication  gave  me  any  reason  to  think  that  his  story 
was  other  than  a  true  one." 

Some  months  ago  President  Jordan  began  an  investi- 
gation into  the  merits  of  the  "Silent  City"  and  after 
going  over  the  ground  wrote  a  paper  for  ^ne  of  the 
scientific  monthlies  in  which  he  gave  it  as  his  opinion  that 
the  Willoughby  negative  was  a  poor  impression  of  Bristol, 
England. 


ILLUSION  PERFECT. 


457 


1 


Mirages  are  caused  in  this  way : — ^The  density  of  the 
air  generally  diminishes  with  the  height;  rays  of  light  that 
proceed  obliquely  from  an  object  then  become  more  and 
more  horizontal,  but  generally  pass  away  into  space. 
When  the  density  of  the  air  diminishes  with  the  height 
with  unusual  rapidity,  as  when  the  air  is  cooler,  the 
nearer  it  is  to  the  earth,  then  the  ascending  rays  may 
become  quite  horizontal,  and  then  bend  downward  to> 
ward  the  earth,  reaching  the  earth  at  a  far  distant  point 
from  the  object  reflec    d. 

The  observer  at  that  point  sees  distant  objects  at  an 
unusual  elevation,  or  sees  above  the  true  horizon  erect 
images  of  objects  which  may  or  may  not  be  beyond 
the  horizon.  If  the  layer  of  air  near  the  earth  be  uni- 
formly dense,  as  in  the  cold  air  over  a  frozen  sea,  and  a 
warmer  stratum  lie  above  it  in  which  the  density  rapidly 
diminishes,  so  that  the  rays  are  brought  back  to  the  earth, 
the  rays  cross  one  another  in  the  hot  stratum,  and  the 
observer  sees  objects  upside  down. 

In  the  desert  of  Sahara  and  other  arid  deserts  the  con- 
ditions are  reversed,  for  the  air  is  hottest  near  the  hot 
sand.  Skylight  rays  descending  become  bent  upward. 
The  mirage  is  not  invetted  and  the  illusion  is  often  per< 
juect 


'  I 


!* 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


THE  GLACIERS. 


Wonders  of  the  northern  territory — ^The  great  ice  fields — ^The  formation  and  action 
of  glaciers — What  is  known  of  the  remarkable  Malaspina  glacier — Some  freaks 
of  nature  which  msn  studies  with  intense  interest — Some  mysteries  in  the  froxen 
land  which  he  cannot  soWe— The  Muir,  Guyot,  Seward  and  other  glaciers. 

PERHAPS  no  single  feature  in  Alaska,  aside  from  its 
gold  treasure,  has  excited  so  much  human  interest 
and  investigation  as  its  glaciers.  The  Malaspina,  Muir,  and 
other  less  well-known  Alaskan  glaciers  are  regarded  in 
the  scientific  world  as  among  the  most  remarkable  works 
of  nature  of  this  class  on  earth. 

The  name  glacier  is  one  given  to  a  mass  of  ice,  having 
its  origin  in  the  hollows  of  great  mountains  where  per- 
petual snow  accumulates  but  which  makes  its  way  down 
toward  the  lower  valleys,  where  it  gradually  melts,  until 
it  terminates  exactly  where  the  melting,  due  to  the  con- 
tact with  the  warm  air,  earth,  and  rain  oi  the  valley 
compensates  for  the  bodily  descent  of  the  ice  from  the 
snow  reservoirs  of  the  higher  mountains.  Of  the  manner 
in  which  glaciers  are  formed  and  moved  and  disappear 
much  has  been  learned  by  the  scientist  in  a  general  way, 
but  much  of  the  story  of  their  work  in  the  ages  which  are 
gone,  of  the  stupendous  force  which  they  exert  on  the 
eartli's  surface,  is  yet  to  be  learned. 

A  recent  report  to  the  government  on  the  Mt.  St. 

459 


460 


THE  MALASPINA. 


Elias  district  gives  some  interesting  statistics  of  the  great 
Malaspina  glacier  which  may  be  regarded  as  the  type  of 
these  ice  bodies  called  Piedmont  glaciers.  They  are  so 
called  because  formed  at  the  foot  of  mountains  by  the 
union  and  expansion  of  ice  streams  from  the  valleys  of 
adjacent  highlands.  The  glaciers  flowing  south  from  the 
great  neve  fields  on  the  mountains  cf  the  St.  Elias  sys- 
tem, for  full  one  hundred  miles  west  of  Yakutat  Bay, 
expand  on  reaching  the  flat  lands  between  the  base  of 
the  mountains  and  the  sea,  and  unite  to  form  a  vast  lake 
of  ice,  which  has  been  named  in  honor  of  Malaspina. 

The  glacier  extends  with  unbroken  continuity  from 
Yakutat  Bay,  seventy  miles  westward,  and  has  an 
average  breadth  of  from  twenty  to  twenty-five  miles. 
Many  of  the  glaciers  are  vastly  greater  in  dimensions, 
but  the  formation  and  movements  of  this  one,  as  known 
to  man,  will  serve  to  show  the  general  laws.  The  area 
is  about  that  of  the  State  of  Delaware,  or  a  little  larger. 
It  is  a  vast,  nearly  horizontal  plateau  of  ice.  The  general 
elevation  of  its  surface,  at  some  distance  from  its  outer 
border,  is  fifteen  hundred  feet.  The  central  portion  is 
free  from  moraines,  or  dirt  of  any  kind,  but  it  is  rough 
and  broken  by  thousands  of  crevasses.  Its  surface  is  a 
broad,  desolate  prairie,  not  unlike  the  rolling  lands  of  the 
Western  plains. 

The  Malaspina  consists  of  three  principal  lobes,  each 
one  formed  by  the  expansion  of  a  large  tributary  ice 
stream.  The  largest  has  an  eastward  flow  toward 
Yakutat  Bay,  and  is  supplied  mainly  by  another  smaller 


THE  TBREE  LOBES. 


461 


ill 


e  great 
type  of 

are  so 

by  the 
leys  of 
om  the 
as  sys- 

tBay, 
ase  of 
St  lake 
la. 

^  from 
Eis   an 
miles, 
isions, 
:nown 
2  area 
irger. 
Jneral 
outer 
ion  is 
ough 
:  is  a 
►fthe 


glacier,  known  as  the  Seward.  The  next  lobe  to  the  west 
is  the  result  of  the  Agassiz  glacier.  Its  current  is  toward 
the  southwest.  Still  a  third  lobe  lies  between  the  Chaix 
and  Robinson  hills,  and  is  supplied  by  the  Tyndall  and 
Guyot  glaciers.     Its  central  current  is  southward. 

The  Seward  lobe  melts  away  before  reaching  Yaku- 
tat  Bay,  but  its  southern  margin  has  been  eaten  into  by 
the  ocean,  forming  the  Sitkagi  bluffs.  The  Ag^assiz  lobe 
is  complete,  and  is  fringed  in  all  its  extremity  by  wood 
moraines.  The  other  lobe  pushes  boldly  out  into  the 
ocean,  where  it  breaks  suddenly,  forming  the  well- 
known  Icy  Cape.  The  waves  undermine  these  great 
ice  cliffs  and  piece  after  piece  is  deposited  in  the  ocean 
to  sail  away  in  the  form  of  bergs.  This  is  the  only  in- 
stance knov/n  in  Alaska  where  a  glacier  advances  into 
the  open  ccean.  The  ice  cliff  at  its  extremity  is  one  of 
the  finest  specimens  of  its  kind  to  be  seen  in  the  world, 
and  furnishes  to  the  tourist  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
sights  on  the  Pacific  coast. 

On  the  northern  border  of  the  Malaspina  glacier,  but 
below  the  line  of  perpetual  snow,  where  the  great 
plateau  has  a  gentle  slope,  the  melting  surface  gives  the 
origin  to  hundreds  of  rivulets,  which  course  along  in 
channels  of  clear  ice,  until  they  reach  a  crevasse,  where 
they  plunge  down  to  the  drainage  beneath.  On  a  sum- 
mer day,  when  the  sun  is  well  above  the  horizon,  and 
where  the  surface  of  the  glacier  is  inclined,  the  rush  of 
the  water  may  be  heard  constantly,  but  as  soon  as  the 
shadows  of  evening  fall  the  flow  ceases.     These  streams 


462 


THE  STIUSAMS. 


are  always  of  clear,  sparkling  water,  and  it  is  seldom 
their  channels  contain  dibris.  Where  the  surface  is 
level  and  broken  frequently  by  crevasses,  these  streams 
are  absent  though  pools  of  water  are  often  found. 

The  moulins  in  which  the  streams  disappear  are  well- 
like holes  of  great  depth.  They  are  seldom  straight,  as 
the  water  plunging  into  them  from  one  side  washes  away 
the  other.  In  descending  the  water  is  washed  from  side 
to  side,  increasing  the  irregularity  of  the  wells.  A  deep 
roar  coming  from  the  hidden  chambers  to  which  the 
moulins  lead  frequently  tells  that  large  bodies  of  water 
are  rushing  along  in  ice  caves  underneath.  The  Stikines, 
hearing  the  mysterious  roars  and  crashes  from  within  at 
Le  Conte  Bay,  believed  it  to  be  the  home  of  the  Thunder 
Bird,  or  Hutli,  as  the  native  tongue  has  it  They  thought 
the  noises  were  caused  by  the  flapping  of  his  wings. 
All  Thlingits  believe  that  in  the  beginning  the  mountains 
were  living  creatures,  grandly  embodied  spirits  whom 
they  all  worshiped.  The  glaciers  are  the  children  of  the 
mountains,  and  the  parents  hold  them  in  their  arms,  dip 
their  feet  in  the  sea,  cover  them  with  a  warm  snow 
blanket  in  the  winter  and  scatter  rocks  and  earth  over 
them  in  summer  to  protect  them  from  the  hot  sun. 
Sitkh  is  the  general  name  for  ice,  and  its  whispered  sibi- 
lants suggest  the  Indian  horror  of  cold.  They  have  an 
idea  of  a  hell  of  ice  instead  of  fire,  a  place  of  everlasting 
and  intense  cold,  where  those  go  who  fail  to  do  right  in 
life. 

Sitkh  too  Yehk  is  their  ice  spirit,  an  invisible  evil 


li! ^ : 


THB  IC&  SPIltlt. 


463 


seldom 
rface  is 
(treams 

• 

•e  well- 
ght,  as 
s  away 
m  side 
\  deep 
ch  the 
water 
ikines, 
thin  at 
^under 
nought 
wrings, 
n  tains 
whom 
>f  the 
s,  dip 
snow 
over 
sun. 
!  sibi' 
e  an 
sting 
htin 


power,  whose  icy  breath  is  death  and  who  manifests 
himself  in  the  Arctic  winds  which  sweep  over  the  glaciers. 
His  voice  is  heard  in  the  crash  of  falling  bergs  and  the 
crunching  of  the  ice  floes.  When  the  ice  winds  are  still 
and  the  glacier  is  quiet  the  evil  spirit  is  believed  to  be 
sleeping  or  wandering  in  search  of  mischief  in  the  laby- 
rinths of  ice  in  the  interior.  The  natives  are  careful  to 
be  quiet,  fearful  of  waking  the  disagreeable  one  and 
refrain  even  from  striking  the  icebergs  with  their  canoe 
paddles  for  fear  trouble  may  result.  When  they  have 
to  journey  across  the  glaciers  they  pray  for  mercy  of  the 
ice  spirit  with  great  ceremony  and  many  chants.  The 
seals  are  regarded  as  children  of  the  glacier  and  proof 
against  all  the  evils  arising  therefrom.  Under  the  gla- 
cier it  is  believed  that  man-faced  seals  dwell,  and  much 
care  is  taken  to  propitiate  these. 

In  the  lower  portion  of  the  glacier,  where  the  ice  has 
been  deeply  melted,  and  especially  where  large  crevasses 
occur,  the  abandoned  tunnels  made  by  englacial  streams 
are  sometimes  revealed.  l*hese  tunnels  are  frequently 
ten  or  fifteen  feet  high,  and  occasionally  cne  may  pass 
through  them,  from  one  depression  in  the  glacier  to 
another.  In  some  instances  they  are  floored  with 
rounded  stone  and  other  dibris.  As  the  melting  pro- 
gresses this  material  is  concentrated  at  the  surface  as  a 
moraine. 

The  ice  in  various  portions  of  the  glacier  is  formed  of 
alternating  blue  and  white  bands,  which  is  the  rule  in 
glacial  ice  generally.    The  blue  bands  are  of  compact 


464 


THE  BANDED  STRUCTURE. 


ice»  while  the  white  ones  are  filled  with  air  cavities.  This 
banded  structure  has  been  the  subject  of  much  study, 
and,  as  shown  by  Professor  Tyndall,  is  of  the  nature  of 
the  slatey  cleavage  in  rocks,  and  results  from  the  press- 
ure to  which  the  ice  has  been  subjected  in  flowing  through 
narrow  channels.  The  presence  of  this  structure  in  a 
vast  ice  body,  like  the  Malaspina  glacier,  which  is  not 
confined  in  narrow  valleys,  but  has  room  to  spread  in 
all  directions,  raises  the  question  whether  the  cause  may 
not  be  looked  for  in  other  directions.  Nearly  parallel 
with  the  blue  and  white  layers,  but  crossing  them  at  low 
angles,  there  are  frequently  bands  of  hard  blue  ice,  two 
or  three  inches  thick,  and  several  hundred  feet  long, 
which  have  a  secondary  origin,  and  are  the  result  of  ice 
freezing  in  fissures.  A  medial  line  may  sometimes  be 
traced  in  these  veins,  as  in  certain  banded  ore  veins, 
suggesting  that  the  fissures  have  been  filled  by  water 
freezing  to  their  sides.  There  are  also  dirt  bands  on 
the  glaciers,  especially  along  the  borders  adjacent  to 
the  marginal  moraines,  which  are  probably  the  out- 
cropping edges  of  the  old  dust-covered  surfaces.  The 
rapid  melting  of  the  surface  produces  many  curious 
phenomena,  which  are  by  no  means  peculiar  to  the 
Malaspina,  but  common  to  ice  bodies,  especially  those 
beneath  the  perpetual  snow  line.  The  long  belts  of 
stone  and  dirt  forming  the  moraines  protect  the  ice 
beneath  from  the  action  of  the  sun  and  air,  while 
adjacent  surfaces  waste  away.  The  result  of  this  differ- 
ent melting  is  that  the  moraines  become  elevated  ridges 


STEEP  RIDGES. 


465 


s.  This 
1  Study, 
ture  of 
I  press- 
hrough 
re  in  a 

is  not 
read  in 
se  may 
parallel 
at  low 
e,  two 

long, 
of  ice 
les  be 
veins, 
water 
ds  on 
snt  to 

out- 

The 
rious 
»  the 
:hose 
s  of 
(  ice 
(rhile 
ffer- 
Jges 


of  ice.  The  forms  of  these  ridges  vary  according  to  the 
amount  and  character  of  the  dibris  resting  upon  them. 
In  places  they  are  steep  and  narrow,  reaching  a  height 
of  two  hundred  feet.  From  a  distance  they  look  like 
solid  masses  of  dibris  and  remind  one  of  railroad  em- 
bankments. The  sides  are  extremely  difficult  to  climb, 
owing  to  the  coating  of  loose  stone,  which  rolls  and 
crumbles  away  beneath  the  feet. 

The  largest  bowlders  are  the  first  to  be  dislodged  by 
the  melting  ice,  and  they  roll  to  the  foot  and  form  a 
coarse  belt  along  the  bottom.  In  this  way  a  curious 
assortment  of  dibris,  according  to  size,  is  distributed 
along  the  sides  of  the  ridges.  In  time  the  narrow  belts 
of  large  bowlders  at  the  foot  become  elevated,  and  again 
roll  down  to  take  their  natural  place.  Rocks  rolling 
down  the  steep  banks  are  reduced  constantly  in  size, 
and  finally  the  fragments  are  reduced  to  sand  and  clay. 
When  the  dibris  is  reduced  to  this  condition  it  is  washed 
away  by  the  surface  streams,  and  so  the  work  goes  on 
through  the  ages.  Not  all  the  turbidity  of  the  sub-gla- 
cial stream  can  be  charged  to  the  grinding  of  the  glacier 
on  the  rocks  on  which  it  rests,  as  some  of  it  certainly 
comes  from  the  crushing  of  the  surface  moraines,  on  the 
outer  border  of  the  glacier,  during  their  frequent  changes 
of  position,  but  the  amount  of  glacial  silt  originating  in 
this  way  must  be  small. 

Isolated  blocks  of  stone  lying  on  the  glacier,  when  of 
sufficient  size  not  to  be  warmed  through  by  the  sun's  heat 
in  a  single  day,  also  protect  the  ice  beneath,  and  retain 


i!! 


^1 


'  I- 


466 


GLAOAL  TABLES. 


'■i 


this  position  as  the  adjacent  surface  melts,  so  as  to  rest 
on  pedestals  frequently  several  feet  high.  These  ele- 
vated blocks  are  usually  flat,  angular  masses,  sometimes 
twenty  feet  in  diameter,  and  have  received  the  name  of 
glacial  tables.  Owing  to  the  greater  effect  of  the  sun 
on  the  southern  side  of  the  columns,  they  usually  lean 
in  that  direction,  and  eventually  the  bowlder  slides  off  in 
that  way.  No  sooner  has  the  block  been  deposited  than 
the  old  process  begins  again ;  it  is  elevated  and  once 
more  dropped  to  the  south.  In  the  course  of  time  the 
bowlders  are  reduced  to  fragments. 

While  large  objects  lying  on  the  surface  of  the  glacier 
are  elevated  on  pedestals  in  this  manner,  small  ones, 
and  especially  those  of  a  dark  color,  becoming  heated 
by  the  sun  melt  the  ice  beneath  and  sink.  Over  large 
portions  of  the  Malaspina  glacier  there  are  little  wells, 
filled  with  water  and  with  objects  at  the  bottom.  It  is 
curious  to  note  the  character  of  some  of  the  objects 
found  at  the  bottom  of  these  wells.  A  leaf  is  often 
found  there  as  well  as  insects  and  fish. 

Above  the  perpetual  snow  line  dark  objects  become 
heated  and  melt  the  snow  about  them,  but  do  not  form 
wells.  The  water  thus  formed  is  immediately  absorbed 
in  the  surrounding  porous  matter.  As  the  melting  pro- 
gresses, a  conical  depression  is  formed  which  has  a 
striking  resemblance  to  the  pit  holes  made  by  sand- 
dragons  in  loose  sand,  but  are  often  several  feet  deep. 
When  small  stones  and  dirt  are  gathered  on  the  surface 
of  a  glacier,  or  on  a  larger  scale  when  moulins  become 


SAND  CONES. 


467 


filled  with  fine  dihris  and  the  adjacent  surface  Is  de- 
pressed by  melting,  the  material  thus  acts  as  do  concen- 
trated large  bowlders,  protecting  the  underlying  ice. 
But  as  the  gravel  rises  in  reference  to  the  adjacent  sur- 
face the  outer  portion  rolls  down  from  the  pedestal  on 
all  sides,  and  the  result  is  that  a  sharp  cone  of  ice  is 
formed,  having  a  sheet  of  gravel  and  dirt  over  its  sur- 
face. These  sand  cones  sometimes  reach  to  a  height  of 
twelve  feet,  and  form,  over  large  areas,  a  conspicuous 
and  characteristic  feature  of  the  glacier.  They  are  of 
the  same  character  as  the  dioris  pyramids,  so  common 
on  the  stagnant  borders  of  many  glaciers  of  Alaska,  ex- 
cept that  they  are  composed  of  finer  materials,  and,  like 
the  glacial  tables,  are  short  lived.  The  melting  of  the 
ice  about  them  causes  the  dibris  on  the  surface  to  slide 
farther  and  farther  away,  so  that  finally  it  is  unable  to 
shelter  the  ice  beneath.  The  fragments  then  act  inde- 
pendently, and  either  protect  the  ice  or,  becoming  warm, 
sink  into  it,  according  to  size  and  color.  In  this  way  the 
sand  cones  disappear,  only  to  form  again  when  the  dibris 
gathers  in  other  depressions. 

The  surface  of  the  Malaspina  glacier,  over  a  large 
area,  is  covered  with  a  coral-like  crust  formed  by  the 
alternate  melting  and  freezing  of  the  surface.  The 
crevasses  in  this  portion  of  the  great  plateau  are  seldom 
of  large  size,  and  owing  to  the  melting  of  their  margins 
are  broad  at  the  surface  and  contract  rapidly  downward. 
They  are  in  fact  mere  gashes  ten  or  twelve  feet  deep, 
and  are  apparently  only  remnants  of  large  crevasses 


^  \^  ^ 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


/.Q 


1.0 


1.1 


12.8 


12.5 


1^  ^ 


2.2 


IM 


Wtek 


IL25  i  1.4 


1^ 

1.8 


n 


1.6 


asjii 


.Sciences 
Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STRUT 

WEBSTfR.N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


'^ 


% 


!^ 


468 


THE  SURFACE 


formed  in  the  mountains.  Deeper  crevasses  appear  at 
certain  localities  about  the  border  of  the  glacier,  where 
the  ice  at  the  margin  falls  away  from  the  main  mass,  but 
these  are  seldom  conspicuous,  as  the  ice  is  heavily  covered 
with  dibris  and  the  openings  fill  rapidly  with  material 
therefrom.  The  surface  of  the  glacier,  level  or  other- 
wise, is  generally  a  fair  indication  of  the  condition  of  the 
ground  on  which  it  rests.  Where  the  larger  tributaries 
of  the  Malaspina  flow  in  there  are  great  ice  falls,  caused 
by  steep  descents  of  the  earth  beneath.  These  falls  are 
at  the  lower  limit  of  perpetual  snow,  and  are  only  fully 
revealed  when  the  melting  has  reached  its  maximum  and 
the  winter  snows  have  not  begun  to  accumulate. 

From  a  commanding  point  overlooking  the  glacier  one 
sees  that  the  central  expanse  of  clear  white  ice  is  bordered 
on  the  south  by  a  broad,  dark  band,  formed  by  bowl- 
ders and  stones.  Outside  this,  and  forming  a  belt  con- 
centric with  it,  is  a  fciest-covered  area,  in  many  places 
several  miles  wide.  This  forest  grows  on  the  moraine 
resting  on  the  ice  of  the  glacier.  In  surveying  the 
glacier,  by  far  the  greatest  portion  is  clear  white  ice,  but 
in  crossing  it  on  foot,  the  difficulties  encountered  in  the 
forest  make  one  think  that  its  area  is  greater  than  it 
actually  is.  The  moraines  not  only  cover  all  the  outer 
portion  of  the  glacier,  but  stream  ofT  from  the  mountain 
spurs  that  project  into  it  from  the  north.  One  of  these 
spurs  starts  from  the  Samovar  hills,  crosses  the  entire 
breadth  of  the  glacier,  and  joins  the  marginal  moraine  on 
its  southern  border.    This  long  train  of  stones  and 


MOR-liINES  FORM. 


409 


bowlders  is  really  a  highly  compound  medial  moraine, 
formed  at  the  junction  of  the  expanded  extremities  of 
the  Seward  and  Agassiz  glaciers. 

All  of  the  glacf  ers  which  feed  the  great  ice  sheet  below 
are  above  the  snow  line,  and  the  dih-is  they  carry  only 
appears  on  the  surface  after  the  ice  descends  to  the 
region  where  the  annual  waste  exceeds  the  supply.  The 
stones  and  dirt  are  then  concentrated  at  the  surface, 
owing  to  the  melting  of  the  ice  that  contains  them. 
This  is  the  history  of  nearly  all  moraines.  The  Malas- 
pina  glacier  in  retreating  has  left  irregular  hillocks  of 
coarse  dibris^  which  are  now  forest-covered,  but  these 
deposits  have  not  the  character  of  marginal  moraines. 
They  indicate  a  general  retreat  without  prolonged  halts. 
The  heaps  of  debris  left  as  the  ice  front  retreats  have  a 
general  parallelism  with  the  margin  of  the  glacier,  and 
are  pitted  with  lake  basins,  but  only  their  higher  portions 
are  exposed  above  the  general  sheet  of  assorted  debris 
spread  out  of  the  streams  draining  the  glacier. 

A  peculiar  and  interesting  feature  of  the  moraine  on 
the  stagnant  border  of  the  Malaspina  glacier  is  fur- 
nished by  the  lakelets  that  appear  everywhere  upon  it 
These  are  found  in  great  numbers  both  in  the  forest- 
covered  portion  and  in  the  outer  border  of  the  barren 
moraine.  They  are  usually  rudely  circular,  and  have 
steep  walls  of  dirty  ice  which  slope  toward  the  water  at 
high  angles,  but  are  undercut  at  the  bottom,  so  that  the 
basins  in  vertical  cross  section  have  an  hour-glass  form. 
The  walls  are  frequently  from  fifty  to  one   hundred 


w 


ii 


f* 


470 


TURBID  WATERS. 


feet  high,  2nd  not  seldom  are  nearly  perpendicular. 
The  lakes  are  usually  one  hundred  feet  in  diametei; 
but  larger  ones  appear.  Their  waters  are  always 
turbid,  owing  to  the  mud  which  is  carried  into  them 
by  avalanches  and  streams  of  water  that  trickle  from 
their  sides.  The  ratde  of  the  stones  falling  into 
them  is  a  common  sound  when  the  air  is  warm  or  when 
it  is  raining.  The  crater-like  walls  inclosing  the  lakes 
are  seldom  of  uniform  height,  but  frequently  rise  into 
pinnacles.  Between  the  pinnacles  there  are  occasion- 
ally low  saddles,  through  which  the  lake  overflows.  The 
stones  and  dirt  which  fall  into  them  in  the  end  fill  up 
the  space  and  force  the  water  out.  As  the  general  sur- 
face of  the  glacier  is  lowered  by  melting,  the  partially 
filled  lakes  gradually  disappear,  and  their  floors,  owing 
to  the  accumulations  of  debris  on  them,  protecting  as  it 
does  the  ice  beneath,  become  elevated  above  the  sur- 
rounding surface  in  the  same  manner  that  glacial  tables 
are  formed.  The  dibris  covering  these  elevations  slides 
down  the  sides,  as  the  melting  progresses,  and  finally  a 
rugged  pyramid  of  ice,  covered  by  a  thin  coating  of 
dibris,  occupies  the  place  of  the  former  lake.  These 
pyramids  sometimes  are  sixty  or  seventy  feet  high,  and 
usually  are  conical  in  shape.  They  resemble  sand 
cones,  but  are  much  greater  in  size  and  covered  with 
coarser  dkbris. 

Like  the  lakes,  to  which  they  owe  their  origin,  these 
pyramids  are  confined  to  the  stagnant  portions  of  the 
glacier  and  play  an  important  part  in  the  breaking  up 


THE  BROKEN  STONES. 


471 


of  marginal  moraines.  Owing  to  the  sliding  of  the 
bowlders  and  stones  into  the  lakelets  and  their  subse- 
quent fall  from  the  sides  of  the  pyramids,  they  are 
broken  and  crushed  so  that  the  outer  portion  of  the 
glacier,  where  the  process  has  been  going  on  longest, 
is  covered  with  finer  dibris  and  contains  more  clay  and 
sand  than  the  inner  portions. 

Just  how  the  holes  containing  glacial  lakelets  originate 
it  is  difficult  to  say,  but  their  formation  seems  to  be  in- 
itiated by  the  melting  back  of  the  sides  of  crevasses. 
Breaks,  in  the  general  sheet  of  debris  covering  the  gla- 
cier, expose  the  ice  beneath  to  the  action  of  the  sun  and 
rain  which  causes  it  to  melt  and  the  crevasses  to  broaden. 
The  openings  become  partially  filled  with  water  and  the 
lakelets  are  formed.  The  waves  wash  the  dibris  from 
the  ice  about  the  margin  of  the  lakelets,  thus  exposing 
it  to  the  direct  attack  of  the  water,  which  melts  it  more 
rapidly  than  the  upper  portions  of  the  slopes  are  melted 
by  the  sun  and  rain.  It  Is  in  this  manner  that  the  charac- 
teristic hour-glass  shape  originates.  The  lakelets  are 
confined  to  the  outer,  or  stagnant  portion  of  the  glacier, 
for  the  reason  that  the  motion  in  the  ice,  where  the  pres- 
sure from  the  highlands  is  greatest,  would  produce  cre- 
vasses through  which  the  water  would  escape.  Where 
the  lakelets  occur  in  great  numbers,  it  is  evident  that  the 
ice  must  be  nearly  or  quite  stationary,  otherwise  the 
basins  would  not  exist  for  years  as  they  do.  T'  "^  lake- 
lets and  the  resulting  pyramids  are  the  most  charactern 
istic  feature  of  the  outer  border  of  the  glacier. 


■  ( 1 
1; 


i'  l(; 


472 


VEGETATION. 


The  outer,  and  consequently  the  older  portions,  of  the 
moraines  are  covered  with  vegetation  which  in  places 
has  all  the  characteristics  of  old  forests.  It  consists 
principally  of  spruce,  cottonwood,  aider,  a  great  variety 
of  small  shrubs,  and  some  rank  ferns.  This  vegetation 
grows  from  the  accumulation  of  dirt  on  the  top  of  the 
ice.  The  ice  layer  beneath  this  surface  covering  is  not 
infrequently  one  thousand  feet  thick.  The  forest- 
covered  portion  of  the  Malaspina  is  estimated  to  be 
from  twenty  to  twenty-five  square  miles  in  area. 

There  are  lakes  at  the  extremity  of  the  mountain 
spurs  extending  into  the  glacier  that  furnish  another 
interesting  subject  for  investigation.  Where  the  rocks  of 
the  spurs  touch  the  ice  they  become  heated,  causing  the 
frozen  mass  to  melt,  and  thus  depressions  are  formed, 
which  are  enlarged  by  a  flow  of  water  through  them, 
until  a  heavy  covering  of  debris  protects  the  ice  from 
further  encroachments.  The  lines  of  drainage  on  each 
side  of  the  spur  converge  and  form  a  lake  at  the  ex- 
tremity, from  which  the  water  usually  escapes  through  a 
tunnel.  Typical  lakes  of  this  character  are  the  ones 
at  Terrace  Point  and  on  the  south  side  of  the  Chaix 
Hills. 

A  glacier,  in  flowing  past  the  base  of  a  mountain,  fre- 
quently obstructs  the  drainage  of  lateral  valleys,  and 
causes  lakes  to  form.  These  usually  find  outlets,  as  in 
case  of  the  marginal  lakes,  through  subterranean  pas- 
sages, and  are  filled  or  emptied  according  to  the  condi- 
tion of  the  latter,  obstructed  or  open.    The  conditions 


TERRACE  BUILDING. 


473 


which  lead  to  the  formation  of  these  lakes  are  unstable, 
and  the  records  which  they  leave  in  the  form  of  terraces, 
deltas,  and  so  on,  are  very  irregular.  When  streams 
empty  into  one  of  these  lakes,  deltas  and  horizontally 
stratified  lake  beds  are  formed,  as  in  ordinary  water 
bodies,  but  as  the  lakes  are  subject  to  many  fluctuations, 
the  elevations  at  which  the  records  are  made  are  con- 
tinually changing,  and  in  instances  where  the  retaining 
ice  body  is  constantly  diminishing  may  Ovcupy  a  wide 
vertical  interval. 

The  terraces  left  by  streams  flowing  between  moraine- 
covered  glaciers  and  precipitous  mountain  slopes  are 
peculiar.  The  channels  become  filled  with  debris  that  slides 
down  the  mountain  slopes.  This  material  is  at  first  angu- 
lar in  form,  but  when  brought  within  reach  of  the  stream 
becomes  rounded.  On  the  margin  of  the  channel  adja- 
cent to  the  glacier  there  is  usually  a  heavy  deposit  of 
unassorted  debris,  which  rests  partly  upon  the  ice  and 
forms  the  actual  border  of  the  stream.  When  the  glacier 
is  lowered  by  melting  the  stream  abandons  its  former 
channel,  and  repeats  the  process  of  terrace  building  at  a 
lower  level. 

The  material  in  the  Malaspina  forming  the  terraces  is 
largely  a  blue  clay,  filled  with  both  angular  and  rounded 
stones  and  bowlders,  but  its  elevated  border  is  almost 
entirely  of  angular  debris.  The  drainage  from  the 
mountain  slope  above  the  terrace  is  obstructed  by  the 
elevated  border,  and  swamps  and  lagoons  ar<e  formed 
back  of  it.     In  the  material  forming  the  terraces  tree 


i 


47< 


THE  DRAINAGE. 


trunks  occur  frequently,  and  growing  upon  its  surface 
there  is  a  forest  of  large  spruce  trees. 

The  drainage  of  the  Malaspina  glacier  is  subglacial. 
There  is  no  surface  drainage  except  in  a  few  localities, 
chiefly  on  its  northern  border,  where  there  is  a  slight 
surface  slope,  but  even  in  such  places  the  streams  are 
short,  and  soon  plunge  into  a  crevasse  and  join  the 
drainage  beneath.  On  the  lower  portions  of  the  Alpine 
glaciers,  tributary  to  the  Malaspina,  there  are  sometimes 
small  streams  coursing  along  in  ice  channels,  but  these 
are  short  lived.  On  the  borders  of  the  tributary  glaciers 
there  are  frequently  important  streams  flowing  between 
the  ice  and  the  adjacent  mountain  slope,  but  where  these 
come  down  to  the  Malaspina  they  disappear  in  tunnels. 

Along  the  southern  margin  of  the  glacier  there  are 
hundreds  of  streams  pouring  out  of  the  escarpment 
formed  by  the  border  of  the  glacier,  or  rising  like  great 
fountains  from  the  gravel  and  bowlders  at  the  base.  All 
of  these  streams  are  brown  and  heavy  with  sediment. 
One  of  the  largest  streams  draining  the  glacier  is  the 
Yahste.  This  river  rises  in  two  principal  branches  at 
the  base  of  the  Chaix  Hills,  and  flows  through  a  tunnel 
eight  miles  long,  emerging  at  the  border  of  the  glacier  a 
swift  brown  flood,  one  hundred  feet  wide  and  fifteen  or 
twenty  feet  deep.  The  stream,  after  its  subglacial  course, 
spreads  out  into  many  branches,  and  is  building  up  an 
alluvial  fan,  which  has  invaded  and  buried  several  acres 
of  forests.  On  the  border  of  the  glacier  facing  Yakutat 
Bay,  the  flow  of  the  ice  is  eastward,  but  its  margin  is 


THE  MOVEMENT. 


475 


Stagnant,  and  instead  of  forming  a  bold,  continuous 
escarpment,  it  ends  irregularly  and  with  a  frontal  slope. 

When  the  streams  from  the  north  reach  the  glacier 
they  invariably  flow  into  tunnels  and  disappear  from 
view.  The  entrances  to  the  tunnels  are  frequently  high 
arches,  and  the  streams  flowing  into  them  carry  great 
quantities  of  sand  and  gravel.  About  the  southern  and 
eastern  border,  where  the  streams  emerge,  the  arches  of 
the  tunnels  are  low,  owing  to  the  accumulation  of  dibris 
which  obstructs  their  discharge.  In  some  instances  the 
obstruction  is  so  great  that  the  water  rises  in  a  vertical 
shaft,  in  order  to  reach  the  surface,  and  rushes  up  under 
heavy  pressure.  The  sand  and  gravel  brought  out  is 
well-rounded  and  is  deposited  in  alluvial  cones.  Beside 
being  overloaded  when  they  emerge,  the  streams  receive 
large  amounts  of  dibris  from  the  moraine-covered  ice 
clifTi  adjacent.  The  deposit  of  the  debris  through  the 
tunnels  brings  about  an  obstruction  which  causes  the 
water  to  run  in  higher  levels,  and  finally  it  comes  in  con- 
tact with  the  roof,  slowly  enlarging  it  upwards. 

Other  glaciers  of  Alaska  do  not  differ  materially  from 
the  Malaspina,  though  each  has  received  much  investiga- 
tion and  thought  in  the  scientific  world,  and  there  is  an 
extensive  literature  on  the  subject. 

The  movement  of  glaciers  is,  as  subject  for  study,  one 
of  great  interest.  The  most  remarkable  feature  is  the 
motion  downwards  from  the  neve  to  the  lower  valleys. 
The  explanation  of  it  is  by  far  the  most  important  appli- 
cation of  mechanical  physics  connected  with  the  subject. 


476 


GRAVITATION  THEORY. 


The  glacier  is  formed  in  the  mountains  of  a  mass  of  snow 
and  ice,  which  is  constantly  being  added  to  and  which 
makes  its  way  down  to  the  lower  valleys,  where  it  grad- 
ually melts,  until  it  terminates  exactly  where  the  melting, 
due  to  contact  with  warmer  air,  earth,  and  rain  compen- 
sates for  the  bodily  descent  of  the  ice  sheet  from  reser- 
voirs in  the  highlands  within  the  line  of  perpetual  snow. 
It  usually  protrudes  into  valleys  far  below  the  latter 
limit,  and  terminates  amidst  a  wilderness  of  bowlders 
borne  down  upon  its  surface  and  deposited  as  the  ice 
melts.  These  are  the  moraines  spoken  of  in  connection 
with  the  Malaspina  glacier  heretofore. 

Prior  to  1842  two  theories  of  glacier  movement  had 
been  maintained.  One  of  these  is  known  as  the  gravi- 
tation theory  and  the  other  the  dilatation.  Both  suppose 
that  the  motion  of  the  ice  takes  place  by  its  sliding 
bodily  over  its  rocky  bed,  but  they  differ  as  to  the  force 
which  urges  it  over  obstacles  opposed  by  friction  and  the 
irregularities  of  the  surface  over  which  it  moves. 
Under  the  gravitation  theory  it  is  claimed  that  the  frozen 
masses,  carried  along  by  the  slope  of  the  bed  on  which 
they  rest,  disengaged  by  water  from  the  adhesion,  which 
they  might  otherwise  contract,  to  the  bottom,  must  grad- 
ually slide  and  descend  along  the  declivities  of  the 
valleys  or  mountain  slopes  which  they  cover.  It  is  this 
slow  but  continual  sliding  of  the  icy  masses  on  their 
inclined  bases  which  carries  them  down  into  the  lower 
valleys,  and  which  replenishes  continually  the  stock  of  ice 
in  valleys,  some  of  which  are  warm  enough  to  produce 


DILATATION  THEORY. 


477 


I 


luxuriant  vegetation.  Very  many  objections  have  been 
urged  to  this  theory.  It  is  evident  that  those  who  believe 
in  it  regard  the  glacier  as  composed  of  an  accumulation 
of  fragments  instead  of  a  great  mass,  throughout  which 
the  fissures  and  ct  ^^vasses  are  in  slight  proportion  to  the 
whole ;  also,  that  they  attribute  to  the  subglacial  waters 
a  kind  and  amount  of  action  in  removing  the  friction 
that  they  do  not  possess.  The  main  objection,  however, 
to  the  gravitation  theory  is  that  a  sliding  motion,  of  the 
kind  supposed,  when  once  commenced,  would  be  con- 
stantly accelerated  by  gravity  and  an  avalanche  would 
result.  The  small  slope  of  most  glacier  valleys  and  the 
irregularity  of  the  bounding  wall  are  also  objections. 

The  dilatation  theory  d^'sposes  of  the  want  of  sufficient 
moving  power  to  drag  along  the  mass  by  calling  in  the 
well-known  force  with  which  water  expands  on  its  con- 
version into  ice.  The  glacier  being  traversed  by  innu- 
merable capillary  fissures,  and  being  in  summer  satu- 
rated with  water  in  all  its  parts,  it  was  natural  to  invoke 
the  freezing  action  of  the  night  to  convert  this  water 
into  ice,  and  by  the  amount  of  its  expansion  to  urge  the 
glacier  onward  in  the  direction  of  its  greatest  slope.  In 
answer  to  this  argument  it  has  been  claimed  that,  even 
in  the  height  of  summer,  those  parts  of  the  glacier  that 
move  the  fastest  are  never  reduced  below  the  freezing 
point,  and  that  even  in  the  most  favorable  cases  of  noc- 
turnal radiation,  producing  congelation  at  the  surface,  it 
cannot  penetrate  above  a  few  inches  into  the  interior. 

It  was  some  time  before  observers  took  up  the  problem 


\i 


47S 


RESULTS  OF  OBSERVATION. 


of  discovering  just  how  fast  and  in  what  manner  glaciers 
moved,  but  in  1842  Forbes  did  this.  His  observations 
were  carried  on  with  the  aid  of  all  the  scientific  appa- 
ratus at  hand  at  that  day,  and  he  thoroughly  satisfied 
himself  that  the  motion  was  continuous  and  tolerably 
uniform — ^that  it  was  not  by  jerks.  He  also  ascertained 
that  the  motion  was  greatest  toward  the  centre  of  the 
glacier  and  slowest  at  the  sides.  It  was  also  found  that 
the  rate  of  motion  varied  at  different  points  of  the  length 
of  the  same  glacier,  being  greatest,  on  the  whole,  where 
the  inclination  was  most  marked.  As  the  seasons  ad- 
vanced he  noted  changes  in  the  rate  of  motion  of  the 
same  part  of  the  ice  and  connected  it  by  a  direct  rela- 
tion with  the  temperature  of  the  air.  Last  of  all,  it  was 
discovered  that  the  surface  moved  faster  than  the  ice 
nearer  the  bottom  of  the  bed.  The  observations  re- 
sulted in  the  theory  that  *'  a  glacier  is  an  imperfect  fluid 
or  viscous  body,  which  is  urged  down  slopes  of  certain 
inclination  by  the  mutual  pressure  of  its  parts." 

The  glacier  problem  cannot,  even  to-day,  be  consid- 
ered solved  entirely,  but  enough  is  known  now  to  make 
the  further  investigation  promising. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


HUNTING  AND  FISHING. 


Wild  Country  for  the  Htmtsman — Big  Game  in  the  Chasms  and  on  the 
Mountains — Opporttmities  of  the  Fishermen — Mallards  and  Canvas- 
back  Duck — Price  of  Game  in  the  Sitka  Market— Native  Ailaskans  not 
Sportsmen — Mosquitoes  an  J  ^  ^e  Bruins — Suicide  Rather  than  Die  by 
the  Attacks  of  Insects — Nich«>i.>  3  Huley  the  Hero  of  a  Fine  Bear  Story 
— Native  Huntsmen. 

FOR  all  those  who  hunt  and  fish  for  pleasure,  not  for 
pelf,  for  those  wh)  love  nature  in  its  grandest 
moods,  there  is  not  a  land  anywhere  under  heaven  like 
unto  Alaska.  There  are  countless  waterways,  lined 
with  towering  mountains,  upon  whose  summits  the  snow 
rests  eternally,  like  a  mantle  woven  from  threads  of 
silver.  Gracefully  it  is  draped  over  their  giant  shoulders, 
as  if  they  were  attired  in  bridal  garments  for  a  marriage 
above  the  clouds.  Sharp  and  distinct,  and  cut  as  straight 
and  clearly  as  a  furrow  in  a  wheat  field,  the  dark  green 
of  the  forests  meets  the  snowy  border,  marking  the  line 
where  vegetation  ceases.  Thence  downward  to  the  very 
verge  of  the  sea,  great  spruce  trees  a:nd  hemlocks  and 
cedars  and  hanging  mosses,  a  jungle  of  small  growths, 
with  the  rank  luxuriance  of  a  tropic  clime.  Then  these 
mountains  of  st  >ne  and  snow  and  verdure  are  rent  from 

479 


4So 


ANIMAI^  LIPH. 


base  to  sky-line  in  great  canons  and  valleys,  where  the 
shadows  linger  eternally,  and  out  of  them  come  tumbling 
in  mad  haste  the  green  waters  of  the  melting  glaciers. 

Populate  these  shadowy  densities  with  bear  and  deer 
and  wolf  and  lynx  and  mountain  sheep.  Follow  a  trail 
from  the  sea  margin  to  some  inland  lakes,  or  toward 
some  mountain  top — the  path  will  be  as  smoothly  worn 
by  the  feet  of  wild  beasts,  as  a  cowpath  through  a 
meadow,  and  if  you  have  a  spark  of  the  sportsman's  in- 
stinct alive  within  your  breast  it  will  burn  into  a  flame. 

The  streams  which  reach  the  sea  are  alive  with  salmon 
trout — ^big,  gamey  fish,  who  strike  voraciously  at  any  bait, 
and  fight  for  freedom  with  a  vim  and  dash  and  strength 
that  test  the  skill  and  tire  the  stout  arms  of  the  most  ex- 
pert and  stalwart  fishermen. 

There  are  many  narrow  defiles,  precipitous  on  either 
side,  which  run  landward  from  the  ocean,  broadening  out 
into  great  bays,  shut  in  by  mountains  so  tall  that  their 
tops  are  lost  in  cloudland.  In  season  these  are  the 
abiding  place  of  mallards  and  canvasbacks  and  blue- 
winged  teal  and  thousands  of  strange  aquatic  birds. 

The  Sitka  market  is  always  overstocked  with  game. 
Venison  sells  usually  there  at  four  cents  per  pound. 
The  deer  are  not  large,  but  their  flesh  is  of  delicious 
flavor.  The  duck  are  not  so  good  because  of  their  fish- 
like taste.  The  fish  are  always  fresh,  of  infinite  variety, 
and,  if  properly  cooked  and  served,  are  fine  mating. 
If  one  is  too  lazy  or  too  busy  to  catch  them,  they  may 
be  had  at  the  wharf  for  the  asking.      These  are  oc- 


IMPROVIDENT  HUNTERS. 


481 


casionally  varied    by  bear  meat,  which  many  do  not 
like. 

The  native  hunters  are  improvident.  They  persist  in 
killing  deer  in  and  out  of  season,  solely  for  their  skins, 
which  they  dispose  of  at  the  trading  stores.  A  great 
number  are  slaughtered  annually  in  the  vicinity  of  Sitka, 
whose  carcasses  are  left  where  they  fall — feasts  for  the 
eagles  and  ravens.  This  is  true  of  other  parts  of  the 
territory. 

An  official  utterance  on  this  wanton  destruction  of  the 
game  of  the  country  is  found  in  William  Ogelvie's  report 
to  the  Canadian  Government  in  regard  to  the  animal  and 
fish  found  in  the  Yukon  District : — 

"  Game  is  not  now  so  abundant  as  before  mining  be- 
gan, and  it  is  difficult,  in  fact  impossible,  to  get  any  close 
to  the  river.  The  Indians  have  to  ascend  the  tributary 
streams  ten  to  twenty  miles  to  get  anything  worth  going 
after.  Here  on  the  uplands  vast  herds  of  caribou  still 
wander,  and  when  the  Indians  encounter  a  herd  they  al- 
low very  few  to  escape,  even  though  they  do  not  require 
the  meat.  When  they  have  plenty  they  are  not  at  all 
provident,  and  consequently  are  often  in  want  when  game 
IS  scarCe.  They  often  kill  animals,  which  they  know  are 
so  poor  as  to  be  useless  for  food,  just  for  the  love  of 
slaughter. 

"An  Indian  who  was  with  me  one  day  saw  two  caribou 
passing  and  wanted  me  to  shoot  them.  I  explained  to 
him  that  we  had  plenty,  and  that  1  would  not  destroy  them 
uselessly,  but  this  did  not  iccord  with  his  ideas.     He  felt 


482 


FOND  OP  KILUNG. 


displeased  because  I  did  not  kill  them  myself  or  lend  him 
my  rifle  for  the  purpose,  and  remarked  in  as  good  Eng- 
lish as  he  could  command:  'I  like  to  kill  whenever  I 
see  it.'" 

Baranof  Island  is  noted  for  its  enormous  black  bears. 
"For  a  long  time  after  my  arrival  in  the  country"  says 
one  who  hunted  in  these  parts  **  there  was  rarely  a  week 
passed  that  one  or  more  natives  were  not  brought  in 
frightfully  mangled  from  fighting  these  monsters.  Many 
of  them  died,  and  others  were  slain  outright.  They  are 
lordly,  rollicking  rascals,  these  colossals  of  the  coast 
islands ;  counterparts  of  their  Polar  brothers,  except  in 
color,  the  one  a  moving  midnight,  the  other  an  animated 
snowdrift.  The  sale  of  breech-ioading  firearms  to  the 
natives  is  prohibited  by  law. 

"An  ancient  muzzle-loader  and  a  knife  are  inefficient 
weapons  for  attack  or  defense  against  these  ferocious 
brutes,  yet  I  know  several  native  hunters  who  have  sur- 
vived such  contests.  They  are  disfigured  of  course, 
rarely  coming  out  of  the  fight  scathless,  but  they  carry 
their  scars  with  pride,  for  in  Alaskan  heraldry  a  bear 
token  is  an  honorable  distinction." 

In  their  sequestered  haunts  the  bear  roams  unmolested 
except  by  mosquitoes  and  gnats,  those  diminutive  scourges 
of  the  highlands  and  of  the  lowlands.  These  setde  in 
swamps  upon  their  eyelids,  and  sting  them  until  they  are 
blind  and  helpless.  Then  the  bear  gropes  about  for 
food  and  water,  and  getting  mired  in  some  swampy 
place,  dies  there,  while  its  diminutive  and  fiend4ike 
enemies  sing  jubilation  songs  and  are  happy. 


PESTS  ARE  PLENTIFUL. 


483 


Anyone  going  to  the  Klondike  must  protect  them- 
selves against  the  tortures  inflicted  by  a  number  of  pests. 
The  louse,  known  by  the  name  of  "greyback,"  thrives 
there,  as  it  does  in  all  mining  camps  in  fact.  Lice  last 
the  year  round.  But  the  most  dangerous  pest  in  summer 
is  the  enormous  mosquito.  The  Alaskan  mosquitoes 
come  by  the  millions,  and  they  are  larger  in  size  than 
any  known  to  exist  in  any  other  spot  on  the  globe. 
Hundreds  upon  hundreds  of  these  big  mosquitoes  will 
light  on  a  man  on  a  summer  day  when  che  mercury  is  100 
in  the  shade,  and  if  his  face  and  hands  are  not  protected 
his  life  is  really  in  danger.  The  usual  protection  is  a 
wire  frame,  hood-shaped,  and  covered  with  mosquito 
netting,  that  is  placed  over  the  head  and  strapped  to  the 
shoulders.  The  hands  are  protecte  1  with  cotton  gloves. 
When  this  mosquito  story  was  told  in  Denver,  an  old 
Irishman,  standing  by,  with  a  querulous  look  in  his  eye, 
remarked:  "Begob!  if  the  dom  m'skeeters  a-are  ez 
thick  ez  that,  w'y  don't  they  ate  the  m'skeeter  nittin  ?  " 
After  this  humorous  turn,  an  old  prospector,  who  had 
been  in  Alaska,  pulled  a  cob  pipe  from  his  mouth,  and 
solemnly  said :  "Well,  as  sure  as  I'm  sitting  here  I've 
seen  polar  bears  commit  suicide  to  escape  the  mosquitoes. 
They  simply  used  their  forepaws  in  see-saw  fashion  and 
cut  their  throats." 

John  Cudahy's  gold  mine  near  Sitka  is  connected  with 
a  bear  story  which  is  worth  telling.  It  is  a  true  story, 
and  does  not  need  embellishment. 

Nicholas  Huley^  from  whom  Mr.  Cudahy  purchased 


484 


HULEY'S  EXPERIBNCE. 


the  claim,  was  a  private  in  the  regular  army,  and  came 
to  Sitka  with  the  detachment  sent  up  there  to  take  pos- 
session at  the  time  of  the  transfer  of  the  territory  from 
Russia.  With  him  came  his  wife  and  two  sons.  His 
term  of  enlistment  terminated  while  in  Alaska,  and  being 
satisfied  with  his  surroundings  he  decided  to  remain.  He 
was  a  fine-looking,  stalwart  Irishman,  standing  six  feet 
two  inches  in  his  stockings.  His  sons  grew  to  be  as 
stalwart  as  himself.  Nicholas  had  prospected  in  many 
places,  and  among  other  locations  had  made  one  at  the 
head  of  Silver  Bay,  about  fourteen  miles  from  Sitka. 

This  location  was  always  a  prime  favorite  with  him, 
and  he  and  the  boys  had  done  a  good  deal  of  work  there. 
The  property  is  situated  about  two  miles  from  the  bay 
shore,  at  an  altitude  of  about  3,000  feet.  From  the  beach 
to  the  ledge  they  had  constructed  a  fme  trail,  and  the 
many  excursions  thither  had  made  of  it  an  easy  way. 
Not  long  before  the  Cudahy  purchase,  Nicholas  and  the 
boys  pulled  away  from  the  Sitka  wharf  on  one  of  their 
periodical  excursions  to  the  ledge.  Besides  the  ordinary 
camp  supplies  they  carried  an  old  army  rifle,  a  relic  of 
Huley's  soldiering.  In  due  time  they  reached  the  land- 
ing place  where  the  trail  began.  Here  it  was  discovered 
that  they  had  'eft  their  axe  behind,  and  Mr.  Huley  told 


the  boys  to  pull  over  to  Salmon  Creek,  two  miles  away, 
and  borrow  one  of  Steve  Gee,  who  was  cutting  wood 
there. 

•*  I'll  go  up  the  trail.     Don't  be  long,  for  I'm  hungry 
as  a  bear,"  said  he. 


SURPRISED  BY  BRUIN. 


AH 


Then  he  shouldered  the  old  rifle  and  disappeared. 
The  path  wound  in  and  out,  a  sinuous  way,  over  declivi- 
ties, across  rocky  shoulders,  through  heavy  timber  and 
dense  thickets,  which  were  like  tunnels  of  verdure,  fol- 
lowing as  near  as  possible  an  easy  grade,  but  trending 
skyward  ultimately.  He  had  no  thought  of  danger,  car- 
rying the  firearm  merely  from  force  of  habit,  and  because, 
on  several  occasions,  he  had  shot  deer  by  the  way. 

In  one  of  the  densest  thickets,  close  set  with  under- 
brush and  small  young  trees,  a  bear  suddenly  charged 
on  him  like  a  black  thunderbolt. 

He  had  no  time  to  shoot.  The  beast  had  closed  upon 
him  suddenly.  It  wrenched  the  gun  away,  and  seized 
him  with  its  great  paws,  flung  him  to  the  ground  so 
violently  that  for  a  little  time  he  was  dazed  and  uncon- 
scious. When  he  rallied  the  huge  animal  had  straddled 
him  lengthwise,  and  was  poking  his  cheeks  with  its  nose, 
as  a  pig  roots  in  the  soil. 

Huley  had  been  told  by  native  hunters  that  if  one  could 
be  perfectly  still  and  counterfeit  death  a  bear  would  go 
away.  His  nerve  did  not  desert  him  in  this  awful  emer- 
gency. He  lay  still  while  the  animal  continued  its 
investigations.  Finally  the  hot,  fetid  breath  exhaled  from 
the  cruel  mouth  so  close  to  his  became  unbearable.  He 
kicked  him  with  one  foot,  being  careful  to  keep  the  other 
portions  of  his  body  immovable.  The  bear  jumped  away, 
and  looked  and  listened  intently  for  a  time ;  then  it  re- 
turned, and  began  the  same  rooting  process  about  Huley's 
jowls  with  its  nose. 


486 


HE  KICKED  AGAIN. 


Again  Huley  kicked  him.  This  time  the  bear  snuffed 
suspiciously,  then  went  a  little  distance  up  and  down  the 
trail,  and  finally  disappeared.  Huley  lay  motionless  for 
what  to  him  seemed  an  eternity,  then  he  arose  to  his  feet 
thankful  for  the  wonderful  deliverance,  when  instantly  the 
copse  near  him  was  swept  asunder,  and  the  ebony  demon 
seized  him  again.  Only  for  an  instant  was  he  conscious, 
and  during  that  interval  he  says  that  he  experienced 
a  sensation  of  being  twirled  round  and  round.  The  boys 
came  up  the  path,  and  almost  stumbled  over  the  battered 
and  bloody  body  of  their  father.  The  bear  had  torn  and 
mangled  him  fearfully,  stripped  him  of  every  rag  of  cloth- 
ing and  fled.  They  carried  the  inanimate  form  to  the 
boat,  and  as  speedily  as  possible  reached  the  revenue 
cutter  Adams,  then  moored  in  the  bay.  The  ship's  sur- 
geon found  that  besides  numerous  flesh  wounds  Huley's 
skull  was  fractured,  and  one  leg  was  broken.  With  com- 
petent treatment  and  careful  nursing  he  eventually  re- 
covered. 

When  you  go  to  Sitka  you  will  doubtless  see  a  stal- 
wart man,  with  a  decided  limp,  a  badly  scarred  head  and 
face,  and  an  impediment  in  his  speech.  You  may  know 
that  is  Nicholas  Huley,  a  pioneer,  a  capitalist,  a  good 
fellow — and  over  and  above  all,  a  bear-hater. 

The  native  men  of  Southeastern  Alaska,  are  of  a 
taciturn  disposition,  but  they  are  indefatigable  hunters, 
making  long  journeys  into  the  interior  on  foot,  through 
the  mountain  defiles  and  over  passes,  using  their  light 
canoes  chiefly  for  crossing  rivers  and  lakes.     They  build 


THE  NATIVE  HUNTED 


487 


along  their  routes  of  travel,  here  and  there,  temporary 
shelters  or  sheds,  open  in  front,  with  sloping  roof 
thatched  with  grass.  Each  traveling  individual  or  party, 
on  leaving  such  a  place,  deposits  in  a  certain  nook  a 
small  bundle  of  dry  moss,  birch  bark,  resin  or  twigs,  to 
enable  the  next  comer  to  kindle  his  fire  without  difficulty. 
This  hospitable  and  thoughtful  custom  is  never  omitted. 
This  is  one  of  the  many  pleasant  ways  which  the  weird 
Alaskan  savages  have  that  their  white  civilized  brothers 
would  do  well  to  imitate. 

These  wild  nimrods  of  the  North  have  had  their  day. 
Already  the  axe  strokes  of  the  pioneers  are  ringing  in 
their  forests,  and  camp  fires  blaze  along  the  mountain 
trails;  steam  whistles  wake  the  echoes  far  up  their 
mighty  streams,  and  the  smoke  from  many  a  white  man's 
habitat  rises  and  vanishes  in  the  mists,  as  they,  too,  will 
vanish  in  that  future  time,  when  the  Argonauts  of  1897 
live  in  history  as  the  creators  of  an  empire  by  the  North- 
ern Sea. 


